Senate approval of the Federal Government’s Growing Jobs and Small Business Package will provide relief for electrical contractors, says the chief executive officer of the National Electrical and Communications Association (NECA) Mr Suresh Manickam.

“NECA welcomes the Senate’s approval of this package that will provide some relief for electrical contractors,” Mr Manickam said.

“In particular, we welcome the headline tax cut of 1.5% for business with turnover of less than $2 Million and the increase in the tax deduction threshold for any asset purchases up to $20,000 in value.

“These initiatives, including Fringe Benefits Tax relief for work-related portable electronic devices and Capital Gains Tax relief for legal restructures are helpful, however, we believe that much more could be done to assist electrical contractors, specifically with regards to employer wage subsidies.

“Whilst the Government has tweaked the Employer Wage Subsidy to assist with the employment of Australians aged 50 and over, NECA believes that employer wage subsidies should be better targeted to assist electrical contractors to employ more mature age apprentices.

“This Jobs and Small Business package is a helpful start, but more needs to be done to assist small business to grow within our sector,” said Mr Manickam.