No, it's not free labour.
It's (going to be ) a wage subsidy, which is not the same thing.
This money will be paid to the employer, not to you personally.
The employer will be required by law to pass it on to you, as their employee.
Labour cost will still appear in the employer's books as a cost in the usual way
(and, yes will be an allowable deduction in the usual way).
What
will be different is that there will be an additonal revenue source for the employer,
which will also need to appear in the employer's books.
Frankly, where that money comes from is not your concern.
No more so than comparable money received by the business to subsidise apprenticeships, traineeships,
Defence Employer Support Programs, accessable work programs, or anything else.
Although we won't know until we see the legislation and subordinate documents,
my view (based on being a lawyer who has worked in both tax and in industrial relations),
is that the employer will only get the money if people actually work,
but not for people who stand down unpaid.
You need to understand your own position.
For example, although we do not yet know exactly how,
this thing will unfold differently for people who are directly employed (even as casuals),
compared to labour hire, compared to
bona fide personal services contractors, and
compared to sole traders.
And yes, there are 100% bound to be employers who will try and abuse it.
Two things you can do about that.
First, join your union(s), now, before the dodgy stuff starts.
Take their advice, and feed them information about any abuse.
Second - start collecting emails, written messages from the bosses (and emails etc),
make notes of conversations. Your unions' lawyers will need this later as evidence.
Fair Work will not tolerate any nonsense with this, but you need material upon which to base your claims.
Start collecting it.
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PS: There area number of things which are not yet fully clear... for example...
- is it intended that everybody gets $1500, or does it go into the business' general revenue, from which wages are in turn paid?
- when must it start to actually be paid?
- is it taxable under 8-1? If so, at what rate? Or is it intended to be "tax-paid in the hand of the worker" (like, say, ADFR pay is)
- What effect does it have on compulsory employer superannuation obligations?
- Does it form part of income for Child Support Calculations? How will revised calulations be done?
Bottom line - going by what we know right now, today, it is probably not correct to assume that everybody will be getting $1500 pf flat, free of everything.
Your boss doesn't know anything for certain yet, because I don't think even Government has worked it all out yet.
