Industries still affected by government restrictions will be hardest hit by the government's plan to reduce JobKeeper payments by $300 per person, per fortnight, Gilmore MP Fiona Phillips says.
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While some businesses have been able to return to normal - or create a new normal - as restrictions lift, many others remain stymied.
The travel industry, events and the arts are among those hardest hit.
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My Travel Expert in Nowra has begun selling second hand books in a desperate bid for some kind of income.
Aside from $30 made on books, they've had no income since March.
"I don't see domestic travel being back to normal until the end of next year, and international travel is further away," said owner Leonie Clay.
"We can't pay ourselves, we can't pay staff - how do we live?"
Labor members Stephen Jones, shadow minister for financial services, and Fiona Phillips, say the government must continue to support businesses who continue to be affected by coronavirus restrictions.
"Some businesses no longer need support, and that's great," Ms Phillips said.
"But there needs to be targeted support, JobKeeper needs to be maintained for industries that don't have income."
Mr Jones was blunt.
"If you don't taper down restrictions, you can;t taper down support for businesses affected by those restrictions," he said.
"We're working with industry organisations, and we will continue to put pressure on the government to do the right thing."
Ms Phillips said the reduction in JobKeeper would result in a $6 million reduction in the amount of money coming into the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region per fortnight.
"If you look at everything that has happened to the South Coast over the past 12 months - fire, flood, drought, and COVID, it's the worst possible time to take this money away," she said.
