The Victorian government has recently introduced an initiative to encourage businesses to employ people from demographics most affected by the pandemic.
Businesses may be eligible for a grant of between $5,000 to $20,000 per eligible employee, if they have recently employed individuals who fall into at least one of the following categories:
- People aged 45 years and over
- People under the age of 25
- Previously unemployed for 6 months or more
- Jobseekers registered with a Jobs Victoria Partner
- Aboriginal people and/or Torres Strait Islander people
- People with a disability
- People seeking asylum / refugees
- Newly arrived migrants from non-English speaking backgrounds
- Veterans
- People previously employed under the Working for Victoria initiative
- Single Parents
Please note that these employees also need to have been unemployed or underemployed at the time they joined and provided with permanent or fixed term jobs for at least 12 months in duration, for a minimum of 19 hours a week, or 8 hours per week for those with a disability.
Existing employees that have had their working hours increased by more than 10 hours a week may also be eligible if they fall into one of the categories above.
Casual jobs will not be eligible for this grant.
Eligible applicants will need to satisfy all of the following criteria:
- Applicants must be the direct employer of the employee (not an agent)
- Applicants must hold current WorkCover Insurance from the time that the employee was employed
- Applicants must have a valid ABN (and ACN if applicable)
- For private sector businesses and sole traders, applicants must have a payroll of less than $40 million, in the financial year immediately preceding the date when the application is made
- Labour hire providers must be licensed by the Labour Hire Authority
- Charitable and not for profit organisations must be registered with the ACNC
- Applicants must be operating in Victoria
- Applicants must comply with all employer responsibilities and workplace laws
Please also read the attached guidelines here from Jobs Victoria for a complete explanation of the eligibility criteria for this fund.
Applicants will need to submit their application within 16 weeks of eligible employees being employed. Instructions on how to apply and what supporting documentation needs to be attached to your application can be found on this link.
As usual, please contact your usual hmh advisor on +61 3 9840 2200 if you have any questions at all or need assistance with your application.