Visa Delays Anger Small Business Owners

small businesAre you one of the small business owners waiting for the processing of 457 visas for foreign workers?

According to reports a number of small business owners are angry at the delays in processing 457 visas, meant to facilitate the filling of temporary skills gaps, but now with these delays the whole purpose of the visas may be defeated.

Although the Department of Immigration and Border Protection boasts about processing claims within 40 working days or 8 weeks, a number of small business owners have complained about 4 months + delays.

As these small business owners explain, running a small business, lack of key staff due to delays and shortages could have devastating financial effects on the business.

Source: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/opinion/john-durie/small-business-angry-over-section-457-visa-delays/news-story/f53d0b941627c2403cc3abb8d014ce35

Why Small Business Owners Suffer From Mental Ill Health in Silence

mentalhealthSmall business owners are usually good when handling workplace health and safety issues regarding their employees but are often slow to act when they themselves are involved, particularly  mental health issues.

Small business owners in Australia are the least likely to ask for health with mental health issues and risk losing their companies as a result.

According to Kate Carnell, the first Australian small business and family enterprise ombudsman says small business owners are amongst the most affected by mental health problems.

She highlighted that smaller operators should seek help if necessary and assist those in their business that need help with mental health issues.

Source: http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/small-business-owners-at-risk-of-mental-illness-if-they-dont-speak-up/news-story/120c21b53689b0ec6abae8a9eb696d55

What The Federal Budget Means to Small Businesses

small business

Following the recent Federal Budget, experts explained that for the South Australian economy the biggest gain was the $90 billion in defence programs for the state.

Another good thing though was the tax cuts for small business.

Also the treasury has confirmed that the small business retirement exemption will continue, so if you’re planning on selling your business, you can use it as part of retirement planning and contribute more to superannuation than the $500,000 lifetime after tax contribution cap.

Read more about what the budget means for small businesses at: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/business/experts-urge-sa-small-business-to-invest-create-jobs/news-story/369087b4f59273e309136d136b9e47c7

Advice For When You’re Naming Your Business

open for businessMost of us, especially small business owners tend to name our businesses based on sentiment but there are some other aspects that need to be considered.

  1. Check the Australian Business Registry and see whether the name has been taken or not.
  2. Keep it short and clear.
  3. Don’t get overly creative, the name should still fit in appropriately with the business.

Find out more at http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/start-up-entrepreneur/three-must-dos-for-naming-your-business.html

Avoid These Five Bad Habits if You’re a Small Business Owner

small businessAccording to a post on Afr.com these are the top 5 bad habits of small business owners that you need to avoid,

  1.  Using the business as your own personal ATM
  2. Don’t just coast along, spending all your time on the day to day operations and never investing time in developing and working towards plans and goals.
  3. Remember that ‘cashflow is king’
  4. Don’t forget to invest in key people.
  5. Have systems in place so that the daily running of the business is not completely reliant on you.

Read more at http://www.afr.com/business/small-business/avoid-the-top-5-bad-habits-of-small-business-owners-20160413-go57a4