The Australian Retailers Association is pushing for employment opportunities in the retail industry, but says the Federal Court’s decision in the judicial review of penalty rates will be a major factor in any potential growth.
The ARA says it has remained at the forefront of the penalty-rates decision in the hope of reducing the strain on Australian retailers, putting the unemployed back into the workforce and increasing trading hours across the nation to sustain growth for the retail industry.
“It’s really hard out there for Australian retailers at the moment as some are actually forced to limit their days of operation due to significant cost pressures,” ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said.
“If the penalty-rate decision is upheld it will give retailers a chance to stand strong against economic pressures facing the industry and further assist in reducing the unemployment rate.
“With the imminent arrival of Amazon, and the ability of consumers to shop online when they want, retail must be given the chance to grow – and growth will only occur by allowing retailers to trade longer hours.
“Reducing penalty rates will give retailers the opportunity to open in regional and country areas, allowing retailers to employ more staff, which will in turn increase customer-service satisfaction.”
The judicial review of the penalty-rates decision ran from Tuesday (September 26) to yesterday (September 28) at the Federal Court in Melbourne.