The JobKeeper initiative is supposed to help Australian businesses survive the crisis, but delays have left many of them struggling.

Employers are responsible for paying their staff $1500 per employee per fortnight, which the government will reimburse. 

General Manager of Black Forest Smokehouse Joshua Deignan told Ben Fordham not receiving their reimbursement until mid-May is putting pressure on their cash flow.

“We want to receive the benefit of being part of the JobKeeper because, at the end of the day, this is what’s going to keep our business going for the next six months.

“We’re doing what we can to make sure we keep all our staff because we will come back from this and we will be stronger, but keeping our staff is integral to our business.

“There’s a lot of businesses out there… they simply don’t have the cash flow, they can’t wait six weeks to be paid or to be refunded. So there’s a lot of people who won’t be able to use … JobKeeper.”

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Image: Black Forest Smokehouse Facebook