Australian small business is hurting.
Over 500 people have already signed the petition we launched last week with the Council of Small Business of Australia calling on the government to stand up for small business and implement the effects test.
Those small business owners and supporters signing the petition can choose to leave a comment if they wish and reading through these comments is illuminating.
Small businesses are doing it tough and they’re frustrated at the government’s failure to move the promised effects test forward.
Alan Macdonald signed the petition because he wants to operate on a level playing field.
“I don’t want to be bullied by big business into entering unfair contracts that I need in order to run my business,” he says.
Shyam Verma describes SMEs as “the backbone” of the country.
“SMEs need and deserve protection under the effects test from the well known predatory actions of the large monopolistic players in the supermarket games of Australia,” Verma says.
Teresa De Blasis says as a small business owner she works 16 hours a day and pays tax on every dollar she earns.
“I don’t have a legal department or cash to pay politicians, it’s about time hard working honest Australians got a break,” she says.
Those signing the petition are concerned the government has succumbed to pressure from big business to abandon the competition reform.
“Just another example of big business nobbling the government,” Fred Harrison says.
“An independent report was commissioned, the effects test was recommended and its implementation, the small business minister Bruce Billson has been outstanding with his leadership, yet government ‘ices’!! Just wrong!!”
So if you haven’t already signed the petition, join your fellow small business owners and take the chance to have your say and to #standupforsmallbusiness.
Let’s keep the pressure on the government so the effects test remains on the table.
As Mick Daly says in his comment on the petition, signing up is the right thing to do.
“Australia you know it’s the right thing to do, please sign the petition and make Australia a better place to do business, to be in business and to let ALL business get on with doing what they do well – thank you,” he says.
Cara Waters is a former SmartCompany editor. Previously, Cara was a senior reporter for the Financial Times’ website and worked for The Sunday Times in London.
