Casual paid leave decision bad news for jobs

The National Retail Association (NRA) has stated that yesterday’s Federal Court ruling regarding back-pay of leave entitlements to certain...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has stated that yesterday’s Federal Court ruling regarding back-pay of leave entitlements to certain casual workers could cost billions of dollars across the economy and jeopardise jobs during a time of economic turmoil. Yesterday the court upheld a ruling that casuals who had worked regular...

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Retail sales plunge in April as full force of COVID-19 hits

Retail sales plunged by a staggering 17.9 per cent in April according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)...

Retail sales plunged by a staggering 17.9 per cent in April according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) preliminary figures for the month. National Retail Association (NRA) CEO Dominique Lamb said the sobering figures show that April saw the full force of COVID-19 hit the economy. “April was the first...

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Retailers welcome COVID-19 rent relief ruling by ACCC

The National Retail Association (NRA) has today welcomed a ruling by the ACCC to authorise tenants to collectively bargain...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has today welcomed a ruling by the ACCC to authorise tenants to collectively bargain with landlords for continued rental relief if they’ve been adversely affected by COVID-19. The authorisation kicks in immediately and allows tenants impacted by COVID-19 to discuss, share information and collectively negotiate...

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Retailers & Palaszczuk Government work together against Domestic Violence

The National Retail Association has joined forces with the Palaszczuk Government to launch a Domestic Violence Retailer Support Program...

The National Retail Association has joined forces with the Palaszczuk Government to launch a Domestic Violence Retailer Support Program to assist small to medium businesses in addressing domestic and family violence. Dominique Lamb, CEO of the National Retail Association, said that retailers can play a part in combatting domestic and...

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Message from the CEO: 19th May 2020

Last week the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released its labour force figures and unsurprisingly it was sobering news....

Last week the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released its labour force figures and unsurprisingly it was sobering news. Seasonally adjusted, the employment level fell by 594,300 people between March and April. Although the official unemployment rate only came through at 6.2 per cent, this does not account for people...

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Retailers welcome QLD Govt. COVID-19 small business grants

The National Retail Association (NRA) has welcomed the announcement by the Queensland State Government to provide $100 million worth...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has welcomed the announcement by the Queensland State Government to provide $100 million worth of grants to struggling small businesses suffering from the impact of COVID-19. The program will see eligible small businesses apply for grants valued up to $10,000 to mitigate the economic impact...

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Qantas wins right to not pay sick leave to stood down workers

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal In something of a speed record for the Australian judicial system, less...

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal In something of a speed record for the Australian judicial system, less than three weeks after final submissions were made the Federal Court of Australia yesterday ruled that Qantas workers who have been stood down are not entitled to paid personal (sick)...

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Food Safety Course for a COVIDSafe Workplace

With the National Cabinet announcing its COVIDSafe economy framework, many retailers and hospitality outlets are preparing to reopen. However,...

With the National Cabinet announcing its COVIDSafe economy framework, many retailers and hospitality outlets are preparing to reopen. However, new rules are in place to prevent COVID-19 cases rising again. This includes maintaining a social distancing approach instore, limiting the number of diners at one time and stringent cleaning...

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Message from the CEO: 12 May 2020

With COVID-19 restrictions being gradually lifted across most states, retailers who had been forced to shut their doors are...

With COVID-19 restrictions being gradually lifted across most states, retailers who had been forced to shut their doors are beginning to reopen. The struggle is far from over, but hopefully this does indicate that the worst is behind us. Just yesterday, the National Retail Association hosted a Town Hall webinar...

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How to safely bring your employees back to the workplace after hibernation

By Thomas Parer and Calum Woods, NRA Legal Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 pandemic spread and required...

By Thomas Parer and Calum Woods, NRA Legal Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 pandemic spread and required social distancing to ‘flatten the curve’, many companies were forced to either stand down their workforces or organise and implement alternative working arrangements (including work from home arrangements) with little...

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Proportion of retail crime increases during COVID-19

These unprecedented times are already creating new challenges for retailers and communities when it comes to crime. Many customers...

These unprecedented times are already creating new challenges for retailers and communities when it comes to crime. Many customers from across the world have asked us about the impacts that COVID-19 is having and will likely have on retail crime now and in the post-pandemic future. So over the...

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Easing of restrictions welcomed, but restaurants measure needs consultation

The National Retail Association (NRA) has welcomed the lifting of several restrictions today, but has expressed concern over the...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has welcomed the lifting of several restrictions today, but has expressed concern over the new measure allowing only a maximum of 10 patrons to dine at restaurants. NRA CEO Dominque Lamb said that for many venues the 10-patron maximum rule will prove to not be...

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State and territory adoption of 3 step framework for COVIDSafe economy

Today's National Cabinet meeting saw the announcement a three step framework for the road map to a COVIDSafe economy....

Today's National Cabinet meeting saw the announcement a three step framework for the road map to a COVIDSafe economy. We are pleased to note that the roadmap aims for a shift from crisis to recovery by July 2020. The goal is to restore 850,000 jobs in the months ahead....

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$1 billion COVID March hit means retail can’t absorb further costs

The National Retail Association (NRA) has stated that due to a $1 billion March hit to retail the Fair...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has stated that due to a $1 billion March hit to retail the Fair Work Commission (FWC) should not impose further costs on the sector and maintain the current minimum wage level. In its Annual Wage Review Submission in reply the NRA cited the devastating...

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March retail figures paint an ominous sign of COVID-19 impact

The National Retail Association (NRA) has said that while today’s Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) retail trade figures for...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has said that while today’s Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) retail trade figures for March represent a giant jump in turnover, there are some incredibly ominous signs of the impact COVID-19 will have on the sector. The figures show an 8.5 per cent overall rise...

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Immediate changes to JobKeeper Rules

Late Friday evening, the Treasurer tabled the Coronavirus Economic Response Package (Payments and Benefits) Amendment Rules (No. 2) 2020 (the...

Late Friday evening, the Treasurer tabled the Coronavirus Economic Response Package (Payments and Benefits) Amendment Rules (No. 2) 2020 (the Amendments), which amends the rules of the Federal Government’s JobKeeper program. The Amendments give effect to changes announced by the Treasurer on Friday 24 April 2020, including important clarifications to the...

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