The BAC wage subsidy ends 31 March 2022

If your business has been considering taking on an apprentice or trainee, now is the time, as on the 31^st March 2022,  the Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements (BAC) wage subsidy will come to an end.

To assist businesses in acquiring and supporting new talent, the BAC wage subsidy provides up to 50% of gross wages paid to an eligible and registered apprentice or trainee to a maximum of $7,000 per quarter across a maximum of 12 months from commencement or recommencement. 

You may also be eligible for the Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) subsidy. For those employers who already have a BAC place for their current apprentices and trainees, you'll be automatically rolled over onto the CAC wage subsidy.

Apprenticeship Support Australia (ASA) has been proud to facilitate real grassroots change for its apprentices – providing support through difficult times and contributing to a positive change away from Australia’s skills shortage. ASA has always been a champion of diversity in the workplace, and has been incredibly pleased with the employer uptake seen throughout the BAC subsidy period.

National General Manager, Lee Xavier, at Apprenticeship Support Australia, often says employing an apprentice or trainee could bolster a business’s bottom line while helping local young people get a running start into a career.  “Apprenticeship Support Australia is focused on supporting trainees and apprentices, highlighting the incredible opportunities available to our youth and the businesses that employ them.”

The BAC wage subsidy has not just benefited individual employers: Federal Skills Minister the Hon. Stuart Robert MP said Federal funding through the Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements wage subsidy, has helped keep Australian industry as a whole afloat during one of the hardest periods in memory, keeping Australia open and continuing to upskill the youth of today for the jobs of tomorrow.

As mentioned by the Minister, "Our record funding of $13 billion in skills and training funding through the pandemic has secured a generation of local Australian apprentices through the greatest shock since the Great Depression. With the economy firing again, hundreds of thousands of jobs available and billions of dollars of skills funding on the table this is a once in a generation opportunity for Aussies to get into a career that will last a lifetime."

The BAC wage subsidy also supports a push to get more women into trade apprenticeships. Senator Marise Payne spoke on the importance of supporting women skilling themselves into new careers. “Our economic recovery plan has meant that there are 100,000 more women in apprenticeships and traineeships now than there were prior to the pandemic,” she said.

If you are interested in diversifying your talent pool, the BAC wage subsidy can help you support and nurture an apprentice or trainee and bring positive change to your industry.

Now is the time to take on a trainee or apprentice and take advantage of the Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements wage subsidy before it ceases. Further information can be found on the Department of Education, Skills & Employment website.

Get in quick and contact Apprenticeship Support Australia today on 1300 363 831 or contact us here.