Move will help address 'staffing shortfall,' says group
Australian retailers have called for national legislation to permit children as young as 13 years old to work to help resolve staff shortages affecting several businesses.
9news.com.au reported that the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) seeks to have laws regarding uniform age requirements for working children across the nation because currently, the rules are still handled state-by-state.
The news outlet said that the state of Queensland currently allows young persons to work at the age of 13 so long as the child has a parent’s consent. Meanwhile, in Victoria, a child could only casually work at 15 years old.
Hiring young children
ARA chief Paul Zahra called for the federal government to take a closer look at the prospect of allowing children ages 13 to 15 to work, given that they have appropriate regulations in place, such as not taking jobs during school hours or at times when it would affect a child’s education.
“Agreeing to a national framework on young workers would help mobilise a willing and able cohort of people to help address the staffing shortfall,” Zahra said.
Reports have shown that there are currently 40,000 job vacancies in the retail sector of Australia.
Other calls of Australian retailers
Aside from requests from retailers to allow the hiring of young persons, Zahra also called for significant reforms to make childcare cheaper, consequently mobilising more parents.
“Australia has the second highest childcare costs in the world – it’s simply unaffordable for many working women and parents, who are turning down employment opportunities to care for their children,” the ARA chief said.
“Solving childcare in this country isn’t just a social issue – it’s an economic reform that would unleash the potential of return-to-work parents,” he added.
To further help address the staff shortages, Zahra also put forward the need to change the pension rules to allow the older Australians to take on more working hours.
“Older Australians can play an important role in addressing the staffing challenge, but they are currently limited in the amount they can earn before their pension payments are impacted,” Zahra said.
“Doubling that amount would be a win all round – providing pensioners with the opportunity to supplement their income if they wish, businesses with access to a willing and capable workforce and creating a more empowered pension group that will be mobilised to work and spend,” he added.
