Yes lets reduce the minimum wage....Next port of call for the LNCP? see this article below sourced from Ethical Jobs site ethicaljobs.au/blog/low-paid-jobs-are-still-paid-too-much-abbott-advisor-says And thank goodness for organisations such as the Brotherhood of St Laurence. AND, if you are not in your union now, JOIN. ___________________________________________ Low-paid jobs are still paid too much, Abbott advisor says Posted on Nov 21, 2013 02:12 PM | Permalink Low-paid jobs are still paid too much, Abbott advisor says Maurice Newman laments Australia’s minimum wage is higher than in the US. Image: ABC screenshot Australia’s lowest-paid workers – including many working in disability care, aged care and other community jobs – are paid too much, according to a senior advisor to the Abbott Government. Maurice Newman is the chairman of the Federal Government’s Business Advisory Council and this week told the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) that Australias minimum wage is far higher than in the United States, Britain and Canada, which he reckons, is a lamentable ‘rigidity’. We cannot hide from the fact that Australian wage rates are very high by international standards, and our system is dogged by rigidities, Mr Newman said. When were $US33,500 and the US itself is only $US15,080 you can see theres an enormous disparity. The community sector – which is tasked with providing essential services to those who can’t otherwise afford them, including many working in low paid jobs – was quick to respond. The Brotherhood of St Laurence’s Tony Nicholson warned that Mr Newman might be out of touch with the realities of a modern economy and society. Mr Nicholson said homeless shelters in the US are “overflowing with full-time workers earning the minimum wage ($US7.25 an hour under federal law)?” After paying for rent in Melbourne or Sydney, living on Australia’s minimum wage of $622 a week leaves just $44 per day for food, transport and utilities. When their car breaks down, (low-income earners) have a choice of either fixing the car, which they rely on to get to work, (or) fall behind in the rent… which is the slippery slope to eviction. People in crisis often turn to welfare agencies for emergency relief or postpone the crisis by using a payday lender. St Vincent de Paul Society’s Dr John Falzon says he’s already seeing an increasing number of working people suffering financial stress. Lowering the minimum wage would only lead to more people with paid jobs relying on charity to survive from week to week. And comparing Australia with the US – where unemployment remains above 7 percent even 5 years after the financial crisis, and economic growth is significantly below that of Australia – its clear that a lower minimum wage doesn’t ensure either higher employment or a healthier economy.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Nov 2013 00:42:00 +0000
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