JobKeeper 2.0 Q&A

The JobKeeper scheme was originally due to end on 27 September 2020 but it has now been extended until 28 March 2021. The extension (known as JobKeeper 2.0) will be divided into 2 stages:

1. Stage 1 will run from 28 September 2020 until 3 January 2021;
2. Stage 2 will run from 4 January 2021 until 28 March 2021.

If you and your employer are both eligible for JobKeeper after 28 September 2020, you can expect the following JobKeeper Payments:

1. During Stage 1: the JobKeeper Payment will be reduced from $1,500 gross per fortnight to the following, depending on how many hours you worked in the 28 days (4 weeks) of pay periods before either 1 March 2020 or 1 July 2020:
   1. $1,200 gross per fortnight if you worked 80 hours or more (an average of 20 hours or more per week); or
   2. $750 gross per fortnight if you worked less than 80 hours (less that an average of 20 hours per week).

2. During Stage 2: the JobKeeper Payment will be reduced to the following, depending on how many hours you worked in the 28 days (4 weeks) of pay periods before either 1 March 2020 or 1 July 2020:
   1. $1,000 gross per fortnight if you worked more than 80 hours (an average of 20 hours or more per week);
   2. $650 gross per fortnight if you worked less than 80 hours (less than an average of 20 hours per week).

Your employer can choose which 28-day period to consider, when calculating how many hours you worked on average: either the 28 days before 1 March 2020 or the 28 days before 1 July 2020.

If you took paid leave during the 28-day period before 1 March 2020 or 1 July 2020, this will form part of your hours worked. If you took unpaid leave during those 28 days, or your hours were not typical during those 4 weeks, your employer may look at the previous month. You can read more about the 80-hour threshold here.

As was the case before 28 September 2020, you must be paid for every hour that you work and your employer is still required to pay you at least the amount of the JobKeeper Payment (before tax), based on the payment rate that applies to you. This means that, depending on how many hours you work per week, you may be entitled to be paid more than the JobKeeper Payment.

Yes, new employers and new employees (who were not previously part of the scheme) can enter the JobKeeper scheme on or after 28 September 2020, provided both satisfy the eligibility criteria. For example, if you turned 18 after 1 March 2020 or you became an Australian resident for tax purposes after this date, you may now be eligible. You can read the eligibility criteria for employers here. You can read the eligibility criteria for employees here.

No, if you previously completed a JobKeeper employee nomination notice to participate in the JobKeeper scheme with your employer, you do not need to complete a new nomination notice to continue receiving JobKeeper payments after 28 September 2020.

From 28 September 2020, your employer will need to demonstrate that their actual GST turnover fell in the September quarter 2020 (July, August, September) relative to a comparable period (generally the same quarter in 2019).

From 4 January 2021, your employer will need to again reassess eligibility, and demonstrate that their actual GST turnover fell in the December quarter 2020 (October, November, December) relative to a comparable period (generally the same quarter in 2019).

Your employer will continue to be eligible if they can demonstrate a decline in turnover of:

• 30% for those with an aggregated turnover of $1 billion or less; or
• 50% for those with an aggregated turnover of more than $1 billion; or
• 15% if you are an Australian Charity or Not for profit Commission-registered charity (excluding schools and universities).

You can read more about the actual decline in turnover test that your employer needs to meet here.

If your employer was previously entitled to JobKeeper Payments on your behalf before 28 September 2020 and is now no longer entitled to claim JobKeeper Payments, but it has a certificate (or, in the case of a small business, a statutory declaration) confirming it has suffered a 10% decline in turnover for the applicable financial quarter, it is now entitled to do the following under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth):

• Direct you to reduce your days or hours of work, provided:
  • Your hours are not reduced to less than 60% of your ordinary hours as at 1 March 2020;
  • You are not required to work less than 2 hours in a day;
  • The reason for the stand down direction is because you cannot be usefully employed for your normal days or hours during the JobKeeper enabling stand down period because of changes to your employer’s business which are related to the COVID‑19 pandemic;
  • The JobKeeper enabling stand down direction is safe;
  • You must still be paid for every hour you work, in accordance with your modern award, enterprise agreement or employment contract;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer has information that leads it to reasonably believe that this direction is necessary to continue the employment of one or more employees (not necessarily your employment);
  • Your employer gave you at least 7 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing;
  • Your employer was entitled to a JobKeeper Payment for you for a fortnight that ended before 28 September 2020;
  • At the time when the direction was given, your employer held a 10% decline in turnover certificate for the relevant financial quarter.
• Direct you to change your work duties, provided:
  • The duties are within your skill and competency;
  • The duties are safe;
  • You hold any required license or qualification required for those duties;
  • The duties are reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer has information that leads it to reasonably believe that this direction is necessary to continue the employment of one or more employees (not necessarily your employment);
  • Your employer gave you at least 7 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing;
  • Your employer was entitled to a JobKeeper Payment for you for a fortnight that ended before 28 September 2020;
  • At the time when the direction was given, your employer held a 10% decline in turnover certificate for the relevant financial quarter.
• Direct you to change your work location, provided:
  • The location is suitable for your work duties;
  • If the location is not your home, it does not require you to travel an unreasonable distance;
  • The performance of your duties is safe at that location and reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer gave you at least 7 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing;
  • Your employer was entitled to a JobKeeper Payment for you for a fortnight that ended before 28 September 2020;
  • At the time when the direction was given, your employer held a 10% decline in turnover certificate for the relevant financial quarter.
• Request to make an agreement in writing with you to perform your work duties on different days or at different times, and you are obliged to consider the request and not unreasonably refuse the request. However, the following conditions must be satisfied if your employer makes such a request:
  • The performance of your duties on those different days or times must be safe and reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
  • The agreement must not have the effect of reducing your hours of work (compared with your ordinary hours);
  • The agreement must not have the effect of requiring you to work less than 2 hours per day;
  • Your employer must have been entitled to a JobKeeper Payment for you for a fortnight that ended before 28 September 2020;
  • At the time when the agreement was made, your employer held a 10% decline in turnover certificate for the relevant financial quarter.

If any of the conditions for the JobKeeper enabling directions or for the request to make an agreement are not met, you may raise your concerns with your employer or you may lodge an application with the Fair Work Commission to deal with a dispute.

If you think your employer has contravened the Fair Work Act 2009 (for example, your employer issued you with a JobKeeper enabling direction or requested you to make an agreement to work on different days when it did not satisfy the 10% decline in turnover test), you can make a complaint to the Fair Work Ombudsman or you can take your matter to the Federal Circuit Court of Australia or the Federal Court of Australia.

Yes, a JobKeeper enabling direction or agreement will stop having effect immediately on either 28 October 2020 or on 28 February 2021 if, as at those dates, your employer no longer holds a certificate (or statutory declaration) for the relevant financial quarter. Your employer must give you a written notice that the direction or agreement will cease to have effect and tell you when the direction or agreement will cease to have effect.

No, your employer is no longer allowed to make a request under the JobKeeper provisions of the Fair Work Act that you take paid annual leave (including at half pay). Even if your employer’s request to take annual leave was made before 28 September 2020, it will no longer be valid if you have been asked to take annual leave after 28 September 2020. This means you do not need to comply with a request to take paid annual leave after 28 September 2020.

However, your employer may be allowed to request that you take paid annual leave under your modern award or enterprise agreement.

With the exception of requests that you take your annual leave, any other JobKeeper directions or agreements that were in place prior to 28 September 2020 will continue to apply, provided that you and your employer are still eligible for the JobKeeper scheme.

Your employer is allowed to issue the following JobKeeper enabling directions under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth):

• Your employer can direct you to reduce your days or hours of work, provided:
  • At the time of issuing you the direction, your employer qualified for the JobKeeper scheme;
  • You cannot be usefully employed for your normal days or hours during the JobKeeper enabling stand down period because of changes to your employer’s business which are related to the COVID‑19 pandemic;
  • The JobKeeper enabling stand down direction is safe;
  • You must still be paid for every hour you work, in accordance with your modern award, enterprise agreement or employment contract;
  • You were not on authorised paid or unpaid leave during the JobKeeper stand down direction;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer has information that leads it to reasonably believe that this direction is necessary to continue the employment of one or more employees (not necessarily your employment);
  • Your employer gave you at least 3 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing.
• Direct you to change your work duties, provided:
  • The duties are within your skill and competency;
  • The duties are safe;
  • You hold any required license or qualification required for those duties;
  • The duties are reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer has information that leads it to reasonably believe that this direction is necessary to continue the employment of one or more employees (not necessarily your employment);
  • Your employer gave you at least 3 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing.
• Direct you to change your work location, provided:
  • The location is suitable for your work duties;
  • If the location is not your home, it does not require you to travel an unreasonable distance;
  • The performance of your duties is safe at that location and reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
  • The direction is reasonable in all the circumstances;
  • Your employer gave you at least 3 days’ written notice of the direction (unless you genuinely agreed to a lesser period) and consulted with you (or your representative) during that period;
  • The direction is in writing.

Apart from those directions, your employer is also allowed to ask you to make an agreement in writing in which you agree to perform your work duties on different days or at different times, and you are obliged to consider the request and not unreasonably refuse the request. However, the following conditions must be satisfied if your employer makes such a request:

• The performance of your duties on those different days or times must be safe and reasonably within the scope of your employer’s business operations;
• The agreement must not have the effect of reducing your hours of work (compared with your ordinary hours).

If your employer punishes you for not agreeing to perform your work on different days or at different times, this may amount to adverse action. Contact JobWatch or the Fair Work Ombudsman immediately if this happens.

Yes. The stand down direction will not apply to you during a period when you are taking paid/unpaid leave as authorised by your employer, or where you are otherwise authorised to be absent from your employment.

This means that you may be able to take leave during all or part of a period during which the stand down direction would otherwise apply to you.

Provided you and your employer both remain eligible for the JobKeeper scheme, your JobKeeper Payments will stop on 28 March 2021.