The government has announced a staff support subsidy for small businesses facing a dramatic slump in turnover after this week's 7.8 magnitude earthquake that has isolated the coastal town of Kaikoura.
Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce and Social Development Minister Anne Tolley have announced an eight-week subsidy for firms with fewer than 20 staff in Kaikoura, Cheviot, Waiau, Mt Lyford and Ward to ensure those businesses can keep people on the payroll.
The measure is a temporary one and may be extended, and will initially provide $500 per week for full-timers and $300 a week for part-time employees.
"The unique circumstances here are that these settlements are on a road that has been severely damaged and a coastline which has been massively altered," Mr Joyce said. "Nobody yet knows when their livelihoods will be restored."
Mr Joyce was tasked with putting together a business continuity package for Kaikoura after the quake cut the main highway connection to both the north and south of the town, stranding tourists and residents alike and requiring assistance delivered by New Zealand and visiting naval and air force resources.
He said the staff support package was modelled on the Christchurch response and that the Government is open to extending it if necessary, although it needs more time to determine what the impact will be.
Other towns in the upper South Island asked to be excluded from the package, with Hanmer Springs and Picton both open for business, although it could be extended to other areas if need be, he said.
This package will be focused on keeping people in work, and businesses will be asked to use their insurance in the first instance.
Mr Joyce said larger businesses had more capacity to cope with major events, but the Government remained flexible about how it would respond once it had more information.
A separate package for farming was likely to be announced in the coming days, with the primary sector facing slightly different issues to small businesses in the affected areas, he said.
The package will be administered through the Ministry of Social Development with support from the Canterbury Employers Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise North Canterbury, and the Hurunui and Kaikoura district councils.
Social Development Minister Anne Tolley estimates the package will cost about $7 million for the initial period, but she does not know how many businesses will take it up.
- BusinessDesk
