From the President

DAVID BASHEER

Recently, Anna Moeller and I were invited to address the full State Cabinet on our “wish list” ahead of the 2026 State election next March. We explained in detail the problems our industry is grappling with and proposed a wide range of practical solutions.

Subsequently, we had the opportunity to further discuss our aspirations with the new State Treasurer, Tom Koutantonis.

The AHA|SA State Council has been working on our election platform for much of this year, and circulated a comprehensive 12-page document to members of State Parliament and associated key stakeholders in August.

Remedies against crime and antisocial behaviour headlined our submission. The AHA|SA is calling for:

• Mandatory jail terms for repeat offenders who consistently terrorise our staff and premises

• Government co-funding to make our liquor stores safer

• Greater police resourcing.

We also strongly made the point that placing liquor restrictions on pubs cannot be the only strategy in curbing anti-social behaviour. These restrictions can be useful as a circuit breaker, but in isolation it simply moves the problems, rather than actually fixing them.

State taxation reform was also high on our agenda, particularly relief on payroll tax and land tax, along with stamp duties on insurance. We continue to advocate to increase the minimum deduction of $600,000 and increase the tax-free threshold from $1.5m to $2.1m.

Furthermore, we are seeking apprentices and trainees to be exempt from payroll tax, as well as a clear definition of grouping to eliminate ambiguity and inconsistent interpretations.

Additionally, in this area we have asked for a reduction in liquor licence fees - which are based on a venue’s capacity or trading hourswhen in reality the venue may rarely utilise those numbers or hours.

The plight of our country pubs was highlighted, particularly those suffering from drought and the continued uncertainty caused by the Algal Bloom. We have called for concessions for these operators.

The skills and labour shortage remains a key challenge.

We desperately require funding to ensure we can provide the jobs we require in the future.

Jobs & Skills Australia forecasts that our chef numbers need to increase by 8% by 2029 and 15% by 2034. It is worth noting that this growth is higher than several trades that are often-cited – such as electricians.

Encouraging more Australians to pursue chef apprenticeships requires financial incentives that support both apprentices and employers.

One of the largest barriers to increasing apprentice chef commencements is the cost to the employer in the first year. A new apprentice knows little about operations in the kitchen, their productive output is low and supervisory costs are high.

We also need to address the dropout rate. Being an unlicensed trade, many apprentices leave before completion due to the high demand for cooks because, unlike an electrician or plumber, they don’t need a licence to use their skills.

Apprentice completion rates for cooks and chefs sits at a miserable 47%.

Apprentice chefs in training fell by 5.4% last year, compared to 2.9% across all trades.

It is clear that number will fall further without decisive government intervention.

Beyond incentives, the State Government has additional levers to pull that can improve our dire chef needs.

• We are asking for the return of tools of the trade allowances for those in training. It worked previously and we are still scratching our heads trying to understand why it was abandoned. Assisting chefs of the future with knives or uniforms would be a quick win in this difficult cost of living environment.

• Mentoring is a proven tool to improve Apprentice completion rates. The AHA|SA is seeking $3m over three years to fund not only mentoring programmes but also for industry ambassadors and keynote speakers. These role models would be tasked with promoting the benefits of hospitality apprenticeships and hospitality training pathways within schools and the community.

• $20,000 for marketing collateral to be provided to schools and distributed in the general community.

• $5,000 for equipment to create an industry focused podcast, shining a spotlight on careers and opportunities within the industry.

• $30,000 to run student expos with service providers such as Study Adelaide, Skills SA and the Skills Commission. These would promote both part-time and casual roles currently available, as well as career opportunities and pathways for students to work within the hospitality industry while studying in Adelaide.

• $250,000 to fund an advertising campaign. Our goal is to dispel myths (VET vs University pathways) and promote the value and potential of hospitality apprenticeships and hospitality training pathways to young people, their parents and career advisers.

Unsurprisingly, red tape and overregulation was also raised. We have called for a streamlining of liquor, gaming, food and general compliance processes. We are also calling for the elimination of excessive back door regulations through codes of practice and guidelines, which are added on top of existing legislation.

The rapidly rising cost of doing business was addressed, most specifically the soaring power and energy costs.

Many past Government incentives in this area have proven far too narrow for our broader membership. Given that we are highly intensive energy users by nature, we desperately require incentives to adopt the expensive technologies that are now available which would not only reduce business costs but promote long-term sustainability.

Our members are the bedrock of the tourism and accommodation industry. We continue to call for:

• a boost in funding for winter tourism

• increased resourcing for SATC’s Trade and Partnership team

• further tactical marketing activities across identified target markets.

In our meetings we applauded the Government’s approach to major events, but cautioned against allowing pop-ups who merely ‘cherry pick’ the most lucrative opportunities.

Hotels continue to be the lifeblood of the live music industry. 80% of all live acts are staged in our venues. Building on the success of the post-Covid See it Live campaign, we are seeking $500,000 to support dedicated live music venues across the State. This funding would assist hotels to host live music, support infrastructure upgrades and encourage activation of underutilised spaces within venues.

Finally, we focussed on the inadequacies of the Return to Work scheme. It serves the insurers and legal system very well, but delivers poor results to employers and, in many cases, to employees.

We are calling for the current duopoly insurance market to be opened up. This will create the competition we desperately need to reduce employer costs and deliver better outcomes - and similarly increase competition among legal providers to ensure fairness and outcomes.

This Government should be commended for their high degree of consultation and engagement. The AHA|SA appreciates the generous time allowed to us to outline the challenges and to table solutions. Equally, the Liberal Opposition continues to be open to discussions with us and their leader and key shadow ministers maintain regular dialogue.

These strong lines of communication confirm the value that all sides of Government place upon our industry. Rest assured we will continue to advocate on all of these issues in the lead up to next year’s State election.

Award Winners

Congratulations to all of the winners at our recent Awards night, in particular the hotels that took out the "Big Three" awards: The Arkaba, Loxton Hotel and Mt Lofty House. The event was a stunning success and a great credit to the AHA|SA team.

David Basheer, AHA|SA President