More than 1500 Queenslanders assisted Back to Work

The Queensland Government’s assistance program for regional Queensland employers to take on new staff has put more than 1500...

The Queensland Government’s assistance program for regional Queensland employers to take on new staff has put more than 1500 staff 'Back to Work'. The $100 million Back to Work program has already assisted 1557 Queenslanders into jobs in the state’s regions, with another 300 applications pending assessment. Significantly, 541 of those...

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Message from the CEO: 20 March 2017

This week, the Federal Opposition has indicated it will move a private members bill to retrospectively legislate against any...

This week, the Federal Opposition has indicated it will move a private members bill to retrospectively legislate against any cuts to penalty rates, after the independent Fair Work Commission’s ruling of a reduction in five out of the 122 modern awards. While it was an entirely independent decision, made by...

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New funding for hiring young people

jobactive PaTH starts April 1st Retail is an important industry for young people seeking an entry-level job. Retail is the...

jobactive PaTH starts April 1st Retail is an important industry for young people seeking an entry-level job. Retail is the industry most likely to employ a young person and teach them transferable employability skills. jobactive PaTH is a new national program being introduced by the Australian Government which is designed to...

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Proposed changes to parental leave

New legislation has been introduced in the Federal Parliament with the purpose of increasing paid parental leave (PPL) to...

New legislation has been introduced in the Federal Parliament with the purpose of increasing paid parental leave (PPL) to 20 weeks, which is an increase from the current 18 weeks. The Government is seeking crossbench support in the Senate for the revised PPL scheme.  The changes would mean that workers whose...

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Nominate now for QLD Training Awards

Nominations for the 2017 Queensland Training Awards are now open. The Queensland Training Awards are a great opportunity for Queensland-based...

Nominations for the 2017 Queensland Training Awards are now open. The Queensland Training Awards are a great opportunity for Queensland-based retailers to showcase our industry’s learning and development programs and commitment to developing the skills of our staff. Also, nominating staff is an excellent way to reward any workers who...

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Consumer Law framework open for debate

HAVE YOUR SAY The Australian Government’s Productivity Commission is undertaking a study of the current administration and enforcement of the...

HAVE YOUR SAY The Australian Government’s Productivity Commission is undertaking a study of the current administration and enforcement of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL). Their main task is to examine the effectiveness of the multiple-regulator model in supporting a single national consumer policy framework, and to make findings on how...

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Last days to apply for digital grants

If you’re part of a small business in Queensland, it’s a good time to purchase software and get the...

If you’re part of a small business in Queensland, it’s a good time to purchase software and get the training you need to use it. Until 9 December, the Queensland Government is offering small businesses matched funding of up to $10,000 for hardware, software and services as part of its...

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Plastic bag debate continues

Across Australia, many of the State and Territory Governments are in varying stages of considering or enacting legislation to...

Across Australia, many of the State and Territory Governments are in varying stages of considering or enacting legislation to ban the supply of lightweight plastic shopping bags. As this issue arises in the various jurisdictions across the country, the National Retail Association seeks to work with the relevant government to...

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$20,000 Back to Work ‘Youth Boost’ a boon for regional businesses

Queensland employers will have an additional incentive to hire local young people this festive season. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced in...

Queensland employers will have an additional incentive to hire local young people this festive season. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced in Parliament today the doubling of the Government's $10,000 incentive, offering a $20,000 kick-back for regional businesses who hire unemployed youths. “Youth unemployment was unacceptably high in some regions and my Government...

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Container deposit scheme proposed for Tassie

POLICY & ADVOCACY > TASMANIA The Tasmanian Government has announced that it has instructed its Environment Protection Authority to provide...

POLICY & ADVOCACY > TASMANIA The Tasmanian Government has announced that it has instructed its Environment Protection Authority to provide advice on the possibility of introducing a container deposit scheme (CDS). Before the Government introduces any such scheme, the National Retail Association has asked that they consult with the retail industry...

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High demand for trained staff

Over the last 12 months, the NRA has delivered training to over 200 jobseekers through the Skilling Queenslanders for...

Over the last 12 months, the NRA has delivered training to over 200 jobseekers through the Skilling Queenslanders for Work program, and we are very pleased to report that almost 50% of these people have found employment in retail. Recently we asked for expressions of interest in hiring trainees from...

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Message from the CEO: 5 September 2016

Last week’s retail trade data may not have been the most high-profile activity performed by the Australian Bureau of...

Last week’s retail trade data may not have been the most high-profile activity performed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in recent months.  That honour clearly went to the national Census.  But in terms of outcomes, this exercise was almost as disappointing! The ABS reported that retail trade flatlined in...

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Australia’s work visa corruption allegations

With more than 1 million people working in Australia on temporary work visas, claims are revealing fraudulent visa applications...

With more than 1 million people working in Australia on temporary work visas, claims are revealing fraudulent visa applications on the black market and exploitation of Australia’s visa regime. The immigration department is currently facing more referred allegations of corruption in the past 12 months than the watchdog has...

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Message from the CEO: 20 June 2016

There are just 12 days left in the Federal Election campaign, and I think all Australians – including the...

There are just 12 days left in the Federal Election campaign, and I think all Australians – including the politicians – are well and truly ready to see the end of it. Regardless of which side you support, we know that these events can have a disproportionate impact on...

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Message from the CEO: 3 May 2016

Tonight, we will know the details of the 2016 Federal Budget, as Treasurer Scott Morrison hands down his first...

Tonight, we will know the details of the 2016 Federal Budget, as Treasurer Scott Morrison hands down his first budget. Given the current mixed retail environment, we have been urging the Federal Government, in the lead up to the delivery of its third budget, to provide as much certainty and...

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Message from the CEO: 26 April 2016

As the Chairman mentioned in last week’s message, we have farewelled CEO Trevor Evans, who has been preselected to...

As the Chairman mentioned in last week’s message, we have farewelled CEO Trevor Evans, who has been preselected to contest a seat at the Federal Election on July 2nd. While the National Retail Association is strictly a non-partisan organisation, we do wish Trevor every success. It is important that...

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