Media Release – Pharmacy of the Year 2014
Sep 10 , 2013
Reference :
Guild welcomes ALP shift on small business The Pharmacy Guild of Australia welcomes the Rudd Government’s foreshadowed change in payment arrangements for small business under its paid parental leave scheme. Community pharmacies, along with others in the small business sector, have been asking for the rules to change so they do not have to spend their own resources as paymasters for the Government scheme. From September 30, 2013, businesses with fewer than 20 employees will no longer have to administer government-funded Paid Parental Leave payments for their long-term employees. Payments will instead be made directly by Centrelink.
The Guild has been asking and lobbying for this change since 2010. Though we would have liked the threshold of 20 employees to be higher, it is a step in the right direction.
This is a win for many of our members, but as the 20 employees is a headcount and not a Full-time Equivalent (FTE) figure, many of our members will have to continue to be the paymaster.
The Guild also welcomes Federal Labor’s announcement that it will reduce the number of times small and medium businesses need to lodge GST returns from four times a year to just once, and the extension of the eligibility for the free Small Business Superannuation Clearing House.
Under Federal Labor’s new GST plan, businesses with a GST turnover under $20 million a year will be allowed to lodge their BAS once a year from 1 July 2014. The current threshold for annual lodgement is $2 million turnover.
Labor says it will consult on ways to allow more businesses to benefit from this reform by allowing refunds of GST credits throughout the year for businesses in a net GST refund position.
This will be important for many community pharmacies who are generally in GST credit and are required to lodge returns for refunds through the year.
Media inquiries: Greg Turnbull 0412 910 261