Hibernation of The Health Exchange - Week One

In the dark of night on Tuesday 31st March a Government conversation over the ‘Net took place with a group of Massage Therapy Association Leaders.  They had been seeking clarification as to “which” massage therapists should close and which could stay open, if indeed there was such a dividing of this service.  QLD had recommended closure of Massage Therapy businesses the week earlier after our Prime Minister used the term “Massage Parlour” in his list of services to close with Beauty Salons, Nail Bars and Tattoo Shops.  The term “Parlour” had not been used with “Massage” in my 20 years and I thought the description was code name for “Brothel”.  The next day I checked the PM’s website to see the list and Massage did not appear while Brothel did.  I escaped that “cut”, I thought to myself.

However, the debate had started and QLD jumped in first.  The other States needed clarification before suggesting to their members it was time to shut up shop and enter the dole que!  The answer arrived with an explanation that because Massage Therapists do not register with an overarching Australian Regulatory Body, and so are self-regulated, we are not “Allied Health Services” but “Complementary Services” and our complement was non-essential health services, so we should cease in the name of COVID-19.  It was effective immediately which meant Wednesday April 1st was our end date.  The HICAPS service thought they would do their bit to help and stopped all claims from massage therapists, effective immediately.  Good cost cutting for them, hey!!
 
                                   Thursday 2nd April 2020

The challenge for me was that I do not receive email to my mobile phone but prefer to use my computer.  Bigger screen and all that!  Wednesdays are my Home Visit days so by 9am I was at my first clients house, followed by a 2pm home visit then a 6pm massage at the clinic.  I did not open my email … until Thursday afternoon!!
 
What an afternoon that was.  Many phone calls were needed to inform my health professionals and clients booked in that I was closing The Health Exchange.  The Acupuncturist could continue so I decided to send the few clients he was seeing here to his home clinic.  The Naturopath had followed her Associations advice earlier in the week to move to telephone consultations and cease body work.  I then needed to create a text to send to our  clients on the text-database explaining the closure and update the website and Facebook Page.  By Thursday night I was able to tuck my 20-year-old business into bed and let it sleep.
The closure was on our minds for several weeks and as the COVID-19 statistics of positive tests increased, it became clear our services where on the chopping board, it was just a matter of time.  Each Government announcement had me pinned to the screen listening if it would be “this time”.  Each time I would breathe a sigh until the next announcement 24-48 hours later.  So, to say it was a relief once the decision had been made would be accurate.  The anxiety of “how will I manage without an income” became a reality to be dealt with. 

I had put in place the back-up plan of registering for the Unemployment Benefit for $500 per week, a week earlier, knowing it would be back dated to then.  I spoke with my Accountant who said only 2 other options were available to me, as a Sole Proprietor without staff – firstly I could draw on my Superannuation and claim $10,000 mid-April and then a further $10,000 after the turn of the New Financial Year.  This assumed I had at least $20,000 in Superannuation.  As a sole proprietor business owner with my level of income generation, Superannuation is the last mouth to be fed … and so goes hungry.  When I was paying my Reception Staff Super Fund 9% of their wage, on top of their wage {at a time when I could not afford to pay myself a Salary half of what I paid them, even though my hours were more than twice theirs} it was like someone standing in my heart and scratching their nails down a black board! 

Anyway, the assumption was that I had more than $20,000 tucked away until my 60’s or 70’s.  A couple of years earlier I had checked on the small sum rolled over from my 20 years of “casual employment” and there was $25,000.  I was saving it up for a new car when I could finally get my hands on it.  With the recent drop in investments I wondered whether there was any left, so I called to find out.  Sure enough, after years of sitting in some Investment Wrap Type Portfolio doing its own thing unhindered by my checking up on it … it was still $25,000.  I’d like to think it shot up to $100,000 and the recent drop brought it back to where it started!!  So, I registered to be able to access this source.

The second thing the Accountant mentioned was that businesses renting from Government owned buildings could access some support from the owners.  I had been renting rooms at the Hume Tennis & Community Centre for some years and while it was profitable for a couple of years there, the last 3 or so have been a struggle.  The economy has been on a downward slide for some time and the number of health professionals willing to risk starting a new business versus being “employed” (rent paying vs taking a percentage of earnings) has declined.  At the time of all this turmoil of COVID-19 closing businesses it was quite clear I had to let go of these rooms.  Of course, one needs to give 3 months’ notice, so my debt only grows larger.  However, the Council will “supposedly” support me from March 1st to my final closure June 8th.  They don’t know what that “support” looks like yet, so the rent invoices roll in!

Only a couple of months earlier I had a conversation with the ATO to take my one Casually employed Reception Staff member, who I have not employed for more than 2 weeks in the last 2 years, off the books.  This was to stop them nagging me about not registering for the Single Payroll thingy that my Bookkeeper said I was registered for but as I had not paid a staff member it had not been activated!  In addition, it gets Workcover off my back about paying them too.  Whilst my Accountant was disappointed, I can only see the upside!  One of the Government Supports was to pay businesses $750 per week to keep their staff employed.  I guess that meant that if I closed business and she was out of work, she could get $750 per week on this program rather than $500 on the employment benefit.  As I did not have any work for her right now she probably would not be eligible anyway!  The downside for me is that I would not get $750 per week as I make “drawings” on the business and not a “salary”.  Could you imagine the Government giving you $750 per week to pay your staff who is made redundant and being able to only claim $500 for yourself from the Unemployment Benefit? Like not even an administration fee for doing the book work to receive and pay her??  Talk about nails down a blackboard!!

Anyway, getting back to topic.  I had calculated that if I was closed and unable to earn an income for 26 weeks {6 months from April 1st to Sep 30th} with both the Unemployment benefit of $500 per week and $20,000 Superannuation, it would average to $1269.23 per week.  Extrapolated to an annual income {as I like to look at things} it would be $66,000 +/- 4 cents.  That was not too bad, I thought, even though below what I would like my business income to be.  Given we are not in a “usual” year this year, this would have to suffice!!

Away from the perspective that is not logical and money-centric {without disregarding that perspective as “Biological and Physiological Needs” [food, drink and shelter] are first on the 1970's Sociology work known as "Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs"} I want to talk about what went on in my head!!

Once the closure had been made, I experienced an interesting rollercoaster of emotions.  First, I felt had to “label” this time off.  I was sacrificing my business to reduce social interaction, especially my interaction of hands on and mostly with elderly people, in the name of COVID-19 Pandemic.  I was not alone in this but knowing this is not as comforting as one would like.  Only weeks earlier an ABC Radio Conversation Hour talked about middle aged single women as the higher proportion of homeless people.  Making my mortgage week to week, sometimes  2-3 weeks ahead, meant that I was at high risk.  A broken leg could put me out of action and potentially see my house taken out from under me.  Now, without the broken leg but limping with a broken spirit, I was stepping voluntarily closer to that statistic.  At the same time, I knew there was a safety net of the financial support outlined above, as long as it all goes to plan. 

Overnight I debated on an empowering terminology to describe this “forced and willingly abided” time of life.  At first, I thought of it as Long Service Leave.  As a business owner with the type of business I run, having paid long service leave was a dream and to take unpaid long service leave a nightmare.  Long Service Leave sounded good.  I was on 6 months Long Service Leave to acknowledge my 20 years in business.  I could go with that.
 
By morning, that was not enough.  Long Service Leave?  What?  I needed or wanted something a bit more creative.  How about “Maternity Leave”?  A 52-year-old single woman with 3 cats taking Maternity leave - what?  Yes, exactly what I needed/wanted.  Something out of the box!  To justify this terminology, I added a by-line:
                                         Nurturing My Self
                                      Nurturing My 3 Cats
                                 Nurturing My Community
                         And Giving Birth To Something New

This sounded like a plan.  Then what happens?  On Tuesday 7th April there is an email from my Association saying that “Relaxing Massage” must cease but “Therapeutic Massage” can continue.  Now I’m getting texts!  “We are back on” one exclaims.  Well, I was just getting used to being closed, now you want me to reopen?  My mind was in turmoil again.

“No”, I decided. I am not re-opening only to have to close in another week or so.  My Spirit could not take that.  Besides, my qualification is debatable as to whether it is Relaxation or Therapeutic.  If I held the Diploma of Remedial Massage, I could count on that.  But if push came to shove, would my Certificate IV in Massage  Therapy defend my muscly arms declaring no one relaxes under Sophia’s thumbs until the massage is over?!  My colleague returned to her clinic of “employment”, which would be easier as she just showed up and did the work.  I, on the other hand would be like that clinic’s receptionist calling everyone and explaining that they got it wrong and they can have their massage after all!

So, having said all that, the question now rests on this - for a woman whose life is business, who was I going to be?
 
Miss Sophia Cull                                                              
Ayurvedic Traditional Medicine Woman | Doula | Pregnancy Massage Practitioner |                                  
Writer | Poet | Film Maker