• Victorian workers impacted by the state’s two-week lockdown will soon be offered up to $500 a week, under a new federal government payment scheme.
• But workers must first pass a strict list of eligibility requirements, and must have less than $10,000 in liquid assets.
• The scheme has been welcomed by some industry groups, but others have called for broader support.
• Visit Business Insider Australia’s homepage for more stories.

The Federal Government has unveiled an emergency funding scheme for Victorians put out of a job by the state’s latest coronavirus lockdown, promising workers up to $500 a week — if they meet a long and strict list of eligibility criteria.

In a highly anticipated announcement, Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday pledged federal funding to workers through the “Temporary COVID Disaster Payment”, processed through Australia’s existing disaster payment framework.

Those who lose more than 20 hours of work a week due to industry shutdowns will be offered $500 a week, and those who miss out on fewer than 20 hours a week will receive $325.

Anyone hoping for a holistic support package will be sorely disappointed, as Morrison said the payments will be finely targeted and subject to stringent eligibility checks.

Applicants must live or work in a designated COVID-19 hotspot, and be unable to work due to state health restrictions.

While this currently includes the entire Greater Melbourne region, Morrison flagged the system could feasibly be used to target individual postcodes in the future.

The payment is only open to Australian residents, or those who have a permit to work in Australia, and applicants must be over 17 years old.

Tight financial requirements are also in play. Applicants who already receive government support, like JobSeeker, will not be eligible for the payments.

Anyone applying for the new support measures must also exhaust their paid leave entitlements, excluding annual leave, before seeking those $500 funding boosts.

And, perhaps most notably, the payments will not be offered to anyone with more than $10,000 in liquid assets.

“We are talking about somebody getting through the next week, who would normally be in an economic situation where every dollar counts,” Morrison said.

Those who have “independent means of supporting themselves for a week… would agree that reaching out for Commonwealth taxpayer funded assistance is not something they would consider reasonable for such a short period of time,” Morrison added.

In a clear indication that Canberra does not want to bankroll workers through further business disruptions, the payments will only be made available after the first week of lockdowns, with state and territory governments expected to pick up the tab for shutdowns shorter than seven days.

Lockdown-affected Victorians who check the above boxes can access the payments through Centrelink on Monday, Morrison said, with the funds heading directly into their bank accounts.

“We’ll be working with Services Australia to make sure that on Monday morning those people impacted that are in the defined Commonwealth hot spot will be able to contact Centrelink and to be able to make their application,” the Prime Minister added.

A cost-sharing agreement between the State and Federal Governments is yet to be reached, with Morrison saying the matter will be discussed at tomorrow’s National Cabinet meeting.

The announcement has been warmly received by the Business Council of Australia, whose chief executive Jennifer Westacott said “the federal government has shown it is willing to listen and adapt as circumstances change.”

Other industry groups, unions, and social services have not responded with such enthusiasm.

“While the support for workers and their families is welcome, we are concerned these payments won’t keep workers connected to their job,” said Paul Guerra, chief executive of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The payment is “no replacement for a wage subsidy,” said Australian Council of Trade Unions president Michele O’Neil.

“This payment will leave working people with nothing for a full week before a restricted number are able to access a small support payment, a third below the minimum wage and half the standard disaster relief payment, which will not secure their employment,” she said.

“A $500 one-off payment won’t get people far – and is way less than the $1,000 Disaster Recovery Payment,” a Sacred Heart Mission spokesperson tweeted.

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