A week in advocacy 

Support package helps business

BusinessNZ Chief Executive Kirk Hope says the business continuity package announced this week will substantially help businesses keep operating through the unknowns of the Covid-19 outbreak.  “Wage subsidies assisting small businesses, leave payments assisting small and large firms, and amended tax settings for depreciation, provisional tax, deductions, and use of money interest are relevant and helpful,” Kirk Hope said

Making an application

Businesses say it's straightforward to access the wage subsidy for employers, contractors, sole traders and self-employed.  A key condition is that the business must have had a 30% or more drop in actual or predicted revenue compared with the same time last year, and taken steps to overcome it.  The leave payment to pass on to employees who are sick, must care for sick dependents, or must self-isolate is also straightforward.  Applications are made through www.msd.govt.nz.

Health & safety at work - Covid-19

Businesses are exempt from the ban on gatherings of more than 100 people.  Businesses continuing to operate are advised to follow BusinessNZ health & safety guidelines based on WHO  advice and the requirements of the Health & Safety at Work Act.

Digital boards & businesses 

Businesses are improving their ability to communicate digitally with customers, staff and stakeholders as they prepare for a period of less social contact.  Email, messaging, web conferencing and other technologies, many free or low-cost, are quickly being adopted.  BusinessNZ says firms should ensure their digital capability is effective at governance as well as operational level.

New reality for work visas

NZ's border closure is affecting work visas.  Workers who have a work visa but are still in their home country will be unable to come here until the closure is lifted.  Workers here on a visa that’s about to expire and who are stuck here because of travel restrictions will be allowed to apply for a further visa.  More information is here.   PwC have created a handy guide to managing the visa application process during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Redeploying labour

Labour shortages will become more acute as the flow of migrant labour is now blocked by NZ’s border closure.  Horticulture businesses facing peak harvest time are seeking to redeploy workers laid off by forestry and other industries.  The Govt has allocated further funds to redeploy laid-off logging workers into roading, tree-planting and conservation work in their own regions.

Services hurting

The latest survey of services shows the start of Covid-19’s impact.  The BNZ-BusinessNZ PSI for February shows declines in sales, inventories, new orders and jobs, and supplier deliveries the lowest level since the Global Financial Crisis in 2008.  Services, including tourism and hospitality, are NZ's largest sector so the slow-down is significant.  The same survey of services in other countries also shows mostly declines.