The Victorian Government is working with the state’s agricultural sector to ensure its crucial supply chains can continue unbroken during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The Agriculture Workforce Plan is helping businesses in rural, regional and outer metropolitan Victoria to continue operating in this new environment.

The plan assists agriculture, food processing and critical food supply chain businesses with recruitment, case management support, worker induction and re-training and business adaptation costs. Where local people are unavailable, the Agriculture Workforce Plan is supporting eligible businesses by offsetting the cost of accommodation and travel for new employees.

It is part of the Victorian Government’s Working for Victoria Fund, which helps people who have lost their jobs to find new opportunities. Agricultural, food processing and food supply chain businesses can fill vacant job roles by registering their requirements on the Working for Victoria platform and accessing the talent pools.

Businesses may also be eligible to receive: A daily travel-to-work allowance of up to $50 per employee to attract new staff if there are delays filling eligible job roles. Up to $200 per day for the cost of accommodating new employees to enable them to fill eligible roles unable to be filled locally. For impacted businesses, between $1000 and $100,000 to induct workers into new roles and deliver training that has been necessitated as a result of the pandemic.

Between $10,000 and $300,000 to cover up to 50 per cent of the cost of adapting workplaces to comply with COVID-19 health, safety and social distancing requirements or adapting to required business changes imposed from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Businesses with urgent needs or those that would like to talk to someone about targeted support, should email the Agriculture Workforce Plan at [email protected] and a case manager will respond to them.

Pictured above: Two women work in a field of vegetables