$18.40 an hour to live, not just exist

Written By: - Date published: 8:01 am, February 14th, 2013 - 89 comments
Categories: class war, human rights, jobs, wages - Tags:

The Living Wage Coalition has released the results of their research, calculating that a wage of $18.40 is needed for workers and their families to have a decent life and participate in society. About 40% of workers currently earn less. The pressure is now on bosses of businesses and public bodies to pay the living wage or explain why they deserve a decent life but their workers don’t.

Businesses and organisation that adopt the living wage will deserve plaudits and our custom. The others won’t. I wonder if consideration has been given to an accreditation system, so that companies paying the living wage can display a badge on their products to let us know.

89 comments on “$18.40 an hour to live, not just exist ”

  1. Phaedrus 1

    Any claims about increased costs to employers are just red herrings. They will pass these on to consumers anyway as they do with tax and other costs. Denying a living wage just means that employees aren’t much better than slaves. The end user (consumer) needs to pay a fair price for the service/product that incorporates all the costs involved. This includes a reasonable profit for the employer which can be controlled by genuine competition. It seems that inefficient employers want to use this a way to keep costs low rather than looking at their business model.

    There is no justification for keeping a significant proportion of employees on the breadline or below. All are entitled to a good standard of living regardless of their employment. We all gain from this.

  2. karol 2

    Excellent that this campaign is gathering steam.

    There’s a symposium today and tomorrow at AUT on Precarious Work and the Living wage.

    This symposium will include in-depth discussions on the employment of vulnerable workers and the current developments around a living wage in New Zealand and around the world. We have a wide range of speakers from the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.

    The programme includes official opening by Helen Kelly, lawyers, union people, acadmics (e.g. Bill Rosenberg, Sue Bradford).

    I like the look of this workshop tomorrow afternoon:

    Workshops: Organising for social change (choose one – they will be repeated)
    1. Building community power. Deborah Littman, Metro Vancouver Alliance
    2. Deliberative democracy. Rev Dr Margaret Mayman, St Andrews on the Terrace
    3. Direct action advocacy. Chris Zack, Auckland Action Against Poverty
    4. Industry organising campaigns for change. Kirsty McCully, United Voice Australia

    • Rob 2.1

      “The programme includes official opening by Helen Kelly, lawyers, union people, acadmics (e.g. Bill Rosenberg, Sue Bradford).”

      What about some people that are in business that will be paying this increase, that might help.

    • Tom Gould 2.2

      I see the hard left are already squabbling over this only hours after its launch. Nice way to take a pretty clever campaign and destroy it before it gets off the ground. What is it with these ‘old comms’ and their need to wreck everything, even their own campaigns? Natural born anachists, I guess?

  3. swan 3

    “Any claims about increased costs to employers are just red herrings. They will pass these on to consumers anyway as they do with tax and other costs.”

    Possibly true for entirely domestically focussed businesses that dont face any competition from imports (a small minority of firms). But for exporters that are already struggling wiht high real wages due to the high exchange rate, this will surely send them to the wall, no? They cant just pass on the costs to the international market.

  4. Tom Gould 4

    The reports and research is interesting and informative, but it’s hardly rocket science that if we paid people $18 an hour or more, and built a bunch of good quality houses for them to buy or rent, and praised their efforts to get ahead rather than demonising them, then things would be a lot better. As Key would say, it’s a ‘no-brainer’.

    • King Kong 4.1

      Or these people could try harder in school, lay off the drugs and booze and get a higher paying job under their own steam.

      • TheContrarian 4.1.1

        While I don’t doubt some people may fit into your narrow “try harder in school, lay off the drugs and booze” category to say that in general sense with a straight face is stupid and you should feel stupid.

      • JonL 4.1.2

        Typical stereotypical, generalised bullshit comment by someone who sees himself as a paragon of superior breeding and status!
        It flows like shit from a cow feeding on fresh clover…….

      • henry olongo 4.1.3

        You are really out of touch mr monkey.

  5. karol 5

    The NZ Herald has 3 articles on the Living Wage today (2 by Simon Collins who has a long record of very good coverage of issues for people on low incomes.

    Simon Collins on Auckland and Wellington Councils looking into the Living Wage for Council workers:

    Both the Mayor Browns focus on the problems, but ignore the exorbitant high pay for CCO CEOs etc:

    [Auckland]Council figures show that 1171, or 21 per cent, of its 5598 direct employees, excluding CCOs, currently earn under $18.40 an hour.

    Living Wage Campaign coordinator Annie Newman said the city could fund the living wage by cuts in other areas, such as the $194 million the council spent last year on “consultancy and professional services”.

    “Twenty per cent of the councils in the UK are delivering or working towards a living wage already,” she said.

    “What they are saying is this is an ethically important step, and they are making it clear to ratepayers how they are going to pay that money.

    “One said we are reducing the bonuses of senior managers in this council in order to pay for this. Another said we are reducing the amount put into consultancy.

    Collins also focuses on those on incomes below a living wage:

    The parents of every girl attending Auckland’s Diocesan School for Girls pay roughly one and a half times as much in annual fees as Ana Malolo takes home for helping to clean the school all year.

    Professional Property Cleaning Services pays Mrs Malolo, an Otara mother of two, $13.85 an hour for cleaning the school from 4pm to 8pm on weeknights.

    Soon after she gets home each night, her husband, Tupou Malolo, leaves for an eight-hour shift from 10pm to 6am as a forklift driver at the Lion Nathan brewery, earning $14 an hour.

    Lifting both of them to the proposed living wage of $18.40 an hour would raise their combined gross income by 32 per cent.

    In net terms, allowing for higher tax, reduced family tax credits and higher rent on their state house because of their higher income, their net available income after rent would rise from about $585 to $691 a week – an increase of about $106, or 18 per cent.

    That may not sound much to a parent who shells out $19,880 a year, plus $3600 for a compulsory notebook computer, to send a Year 9 girl to Diocesan.

    Kate Shuttleworth’s article is on London living wage campaigner Deborah Littman , who,

    says paying a living wage will require a leap in thinking to accompany a monetary leap from the $13.50 an hour minimum wage to the proposed $18.40.

    She says the aim is never to have the living wage legislated for, but for it to be a voluntary, grassroots campaign. The mindset shift she is talking about is getting employers around to thinking that paying $18.40 is not a burden because it costs more, but a benefit because it results in improved productivity, reduced staff turnover and absenteeism.

    “Over and over again businesses tell us when they introduce the living wage they find their business does better – their staff turnover goes down and the cost of recruitment is lower.”

    The living wage campaign in Britain has business allies including KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Barclays Bank and HSBC.

    • Hayden 5.1

      Professional Property Cleaning Services pays Mrs Malolo, an Otara mother of two, $13.85 an hour for cleaning the school from 4pm to 8pm on weeknights.

      You can bet she’s charged out at $30/hour or more though.

    • geoff 5.2

      nice work, karol.

    • Wayne 5.3

      So Karol, you are an enthusiast for this campaign (hardly surprising that Simon Collins is the journalist), which is really for a minimum wage of $18.40, as opposed to the current campaign of $15. I know it is said not to be, but it is an unavoidable conclusion – how could the Left justify a statutory minimum wage that is less than a “living wage”.

      After all a campaign that dates back 4 years about a $15 minimum wage might seem a bit dated.

      Do you think Labour is going to go for it. I know the Greens will, but they are always slightly disconnected from economic reality. For the Left, the question is surely what will Labour do?

      • karol 5.3.1

        Wayne, the 3rd article I linked to, featuring the London Living Wage campaigner says this:

        She says the aim is never to have the living wage legislated for, but for it to be a voluntary, grassroots campaign. The mindset shift she is talking about is getting employers around to thinking that paying $18.40 is not a burden because it costs more, but a benefit because it results in improved productivity, reduced staff turnover and absenteeism.

        I understand that NZ Living Wage campaigners have the same approach. So you fail in basic understanding of the campaign by equating it with the statutory minimum wage.

        • Wayne 5.3.1.1

          I did acknowledge the organizers say it is not about the minimum wage, but it is my view it will soon morph into a campaign on the minimum wage.

          The $15 per hour campaign is after all nearly 5 years old.

  6. just saying 6

    I’d certainly be keen to support businesses that pay a minimum of $18.40 to employees. I hope there is a way that genuine compliance can be advertised. Partly also, to shame employers that are ripping-off their workers and bludging off taxpayers to the greatest degree via various forms of wage supplementation.

    Now we need a commitment from all the opposition parties to implement this, or a greater amount as the minimum wage within a reasonable time-frame, for example, within 18 months of becoming government.

    I notice opponents of the living wage movement bang on about 16 year-olds living at home, allegedly not needing $18.40 per hour to survive. Apparently they are unaware that in poor households wages from children living at home, even from paper delivery, can be essential to the family being able to scrape by. No mention is made of the fact that most earning below this rate are adults who have been earning subsistance wages for years, even decades.

    It is repugnant to hear the well-to-do pontificating about how much the poorest workers are worth, and making judgements about their spending, or (my personal favourite), claiming their part-time uni job as relevant and equivalent life experience to justify consigning others to years or lifetimes of poverty.

    This issue is of particular relevance to women because women are disproportionately likely to be underpaid.

    It’s good that there appears to be a high level of support for this campaign. I don’t think the amount is large enough, but I’ll gladly support it as a positive start.

    • erentz 6.2

      “I’d certainly be keen to support businesses that pay a minimum of $18.40 to employees. I hope there is a way that genuine compliance can be advertised.”

      ++ Would really like to see that too.

    • James 6.3

      You could always start your own business and learn some commercial realities – and then see if you are paying all your staff that.

      • Colonial Viper 6.3.1

        The commercial reality is that this Govt (and others) prefer to spend money outside of NZ than inside. As well as letting foreign corporates pump money out of our economy.

        And you wonder why Kiwi businesses trying to find money in this country are having a hard time with “commercial reality”.

      • Murray Olsen 6.3.2

        I did have a business a long time ago. I paid my employee about 4 times the minimum rate. He deserved it. On the advice of my lawyer, I never made a profit. I didn’t do it for long, for a number of reasons, but I would love to know what commercial realities I needed to learn. Pay wages, pay tax, pay ACC, maintain the equipment, pay your bills on time, do the job well, and listen to your customers. What have I missed? Joining the NActional Party?

    • David H 6.4

      That is there are any jobs for 16 year olds.

  7. bad12 7

    While the ‘living wage’ is easily supported i am more of the opinion that this is focused wrongly in that we as a country have actually cut the cost of living radically for those who are forced to live on a limited income be they low waged workers or beneficiaries,

    I would far prefer a campaign that focused on lowering the cost of accommodation for all households earning below a level of income which is judged as unsuitable to sustain a modern household,

    A situation where everyone who has a household income of $45,000 a year or less pays as a maximum 25% of that income as the cost of accommodation legislated for by the Parliament wold put the onus squarely on the shoulders of that Parliament to provide the means of achieving this rather than have to fight employer by employer for a ‘living wage’ where a large amount of the working poor are bound to miss out on achieving that goal,

    It is as much the ‘fault’ of successive Governments that the level of poverty among both beneficiaries and the low waged workers has been allowed to occur, and as it is Government that has in it’s hands the levers of control of the economy it should be Government that provides the solution to that growing impoverishment among the lower income groups in our society,

    My belief is that such impoverishment cannot into the future be ‘simply’ fixed by an increase in income and that a mechanism for reducing the greatest ‘cost’ to those lower income groups, that of accommodation needs be urgently implemented…

    • Colonial Viper 7.1

      You’re right of course. Accomodation and electricity costs for median and low income families need to be heavily reduced.

      • King Kong 7.1.1

        I totally agree with you on energy costs. I got a bill for one month of power in the winter that came to $1200 and must say it made me quite cross.

        As far as I can tell my parents taxes paid for all the power infrastucture years ago so I can’t work out where the cost is that needs to be passed on in such whacking great lumps. Maybe I am missing something.

        • Rich 7.1.1.1

          You know those little switch things, usually by each door? They let you turn the lights off. As well as not keeping you awake all the time, you’ll get a lower power bill. A win all round.

          • King Kong 7.1.1.1.1

            Would you advocate turning the oven off when not using it as well?

          • infused 7.1.1.1.2

            Nah. It’s heat pumps. That’s where the cost comes from.

          • NoseViper (The Nose knows) 7.1.1.1.3

            You’re not seriously considering that running around flicking light switches off is going to save much? That sort of thing can turn into an obssessive compulsive disorder. It’s heating, the frig and using the washing machine plus running computers that run the cost up. And it’s with those that savings can be made. Sleeveless tops in summer, less air-con, and long sleeved t shirts and leggings in winter help keep blood circulating with warmth and comfort.

            It is possible to get down to a very small amount if saving for something and with much inconvenience. Not very good for a family though. Bearable if the saving is to be applied to a costly desired project. But as a regular way of life, dark, cold, depressing – we have tried to improve conditions in NZ to a higher level than the early white colonials encountered, and which Maori also faced.

        • bad12 7.1.1.2

          Your a weakling then??? on my limited income my winter power bill hardly exceeds that of my summer one,

          Try as has already been kindly pointed out to you using the available switches to lower your usage,

          Having no heating appliances in the house helps, this will force you to think of other easily achieved mechanisms for creating personal warmth for all those in your household,

          Like??? wearing layers of clothes, in winter i increase the number of tee shirts and track pants i wear layer by layer as winter progresses,

          For perhaps 3-4 weeks i am wearing so many layers that this is slightly uncomfortable, far less uncomfortable tho than a 1200 dollar power account…

          • Colonial Viper 7.1.1.2.1

            Indeed. Don’t be American and keep your thermostats above 70oF. (21 deg C)

            16 deg C and a jersey works wonders on your power bill. Also, you don’t have to heat your laundry or the unused spare bedroom that much.

          • karol 7.1.1.2.2

            bad, I think that is a good solution for younger people, and depending on the place you are living. I noticed that in my last couple of moves around west Auckland, one place was naturally much warmer than the other. In the colder place, putting on extra clothes wasn’t enough at all. And no extra layers seem to warm my feet and hands on colder days. I need to raise the room temperature to enable me to do anything that requires ungloved hands.

            Also, I notice as I get older my tolerance for cold is less. In my younger days I camped around the Mediterranean for several months in their winter. I slept on the hard ground, and had cold showers quite early in the morning. I noticed in recent years, during power cuts, when I tried a cold shower, even on relatively mild Auckland mornings, it nearly stopped my heart the shock was so great.

            • bad12 7.1.1.2.2.2

              Lolz i don’t recommend cold showers for anyone in Winter Brrrr, summer tho i shower under the hose out in the sun,

              i am 56, as Winter deepens i put on extra layers of tee-shirts,(up to 4),layers of hoodies(up to 3),and layers of track pants,(up to 3), and a lot of the time i am sitting here at home with the door open, no Winter flu for at least 5 years,(i can’t really remember the last Winter flu i had),

              I have major bone problems,(1 hip totally hemo and a large osteophyte growing on my lower spine), which limit me in what i can do, but i always save the heaviest stuff in the range of what i can achieve in my garden with the allotted hour till winter so that i can get the blood pumping and it’s surprising once all the layers go back on just how warm i remain afterwards for quite some time,

              Lolz, each to their own karol, some of us seem to have a greater tolerance to Winter cold than others but with a restricted income as i have got spending 1200 bucks on a power bill is not an option so i have had to think up other’s and while i am happy to do so for myself i find it abhorrent that peoples kids are expected to live in such conditions…

              • karol

                Well, I try to go without heating as much as possible. However, I also think some people have better circulation than others. Even working out most days on the exercise machine, getting up a sweat, does not stop my cold feet and hands problem for the day. Me – early 60s. Though I had the cold feet issue for a decade or more.

                • lprent

                  Ha. I have this tendency to view that as a gender issue. Like my previous partner, Lyn has an amazing ability to wander around with hand and feet in winter (and even summer!) that are frigging blocks of ice. I know this because they tend to warm them in sensitive (and warm) parts of my anatomy.

                  If I want to start overheating, all I have to do is to start wearing shoes and in extreme cases a hat.

                • NoseViper (The Nose knows)

                  karol
                  There’s something called Raynauds syndrome about circulation problems to the ‘extremities’ when little veins close down in very cold weather. Your hands can go quite white and bloodless and take a wee while to recover. Euh.

                  • karol

                    Yew! NV(TNK), I’m more with Lynn in thinking there’s probably a gender angle to it – also from my limited experience.

          • King Kong 7.1.1.2.3

            I think you guys are missing the point. Its not the money that worried me too much just how expensive power is. I refuse to rug up in my own home and I realise this is a luxury I have to pay for but it shouldn’t be to that extent.

            • bad12 7.1.1.2.3.1

              Well why then would you have voted for a Government that created such a market in the first place then,

              While i agree with your premise of power being too expensive, especially now when the Generators are admitting that there is an over-supply, i cannot feel much sympathy for you,

              The cost of electricity to you has steadily increased under the ‘market model’ and as the market model of housing has FAILED so has the market model of electricity generation and supply,

              This FAILURE of the market model will only be exacerbated if the current plans to sell Mighty River Power and the other Generating companies goes ahead,

              Perhaps you should look to changing your voting pattern as a response…

        • geoff 7.1.1.3

          Maybe I am missing something.

          Hah!One penny has dropped, a thousand more to go! What you’re missing is that a bunch of crooks sold the country down the river (on a cabbage boat).
          Your parents helped pay for much more than just the electricty infrastructure.

          We’ll make a socialist out of you yet.

        • Murray Olsen 7.1.1.4

          My wife and I pay a maximum of $A150 a month in the Brisbane, for a two bedroom flat where we have the aircon going for an hour or more most days. I doubt if the Queensland power industry is a model of socialism, but it does seem there is something horribly wrong with having much higher bills back home. As I understand it, most of the power comes from installations which require little or no maintenance and the raw material falls from the sky. Presumably the transmission costs and line maintenance would be higher in Queensland.
          Would the parties on the “left” accept the need for an inquiry into electricity prices, or are too many Labour apparatchiks warming seats on boards of directors? Lowering the cost of power is something the poor need and the middle class that Labour targets would also appreciate.

    • NoseViper (The Nose knows) 7.2

      On Radionz recently there was a program on people following the gipsy caravan circuit to fairs and earning a bare living wage doing so. A Spectrum program I think. One woman stated that WINZ had told her to find a cheaper place to live and that had initiated her shifting herself, child, dog etc to this lifestyle.

      WINZ always have the option to make people’s lives miserable as far as housing is concerned even if prices do come down. And it seems that they are encouraged to do this on instructions and bonuses from the top.

      What is needed is a genuine desire to help people and provide needed support to find good, suitable accommodation as required. Further WINZ could go into offering individual planning and life coaching along with expertise on housing maintenance and options like sweat equities for families able to help themselves.

  8. The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 8

    “…wage of $18.40 is needed for workers and their families..”

    So how much do they advocate you should get if you don’t have a family?

    • Kiev 8.1

      A) 40 hours @ $13.50 = $540.00 per week (before tax)
      B) 40 hours @ $18.40 = $736.00 per week (before tax)
      Difference $196 per week (before tax)

      Currently worker on A) with 2 kids would also be getting an additional $217.00 (after tax) from
      Family tax credit / In-work tax credit. A) with 1 kids would be an additional $152.00 (after tax).

      WFF breeds poverty – hell take 8 kids live in Invercargill and you will get $678.00 a week (after tax), no wonder you can afford 10L of Coke a day.

      • bad12 8.1.1

        Your example (a) $540 per week (befor tax), is in fact the expected amount for rental accommodation in both Auckland and Christchurch and very close to what is being asked for in Wellington for a 3 bedroom house,

        Working to pay the rent and relying on the Working for Families tax credit to put the food on the table and pay the power bill, (waged slavery is the best descriptive),

        A regulation 25% of income to be paid as rent would leave the people in your first example $405 better off with disposable income able to be spent into the economy…

      • NoseViper (The Nose knows) 8.1.2

        Kiev
        What a wonder you are. You’ve sussed it – are you already working for WINZ or NZ Housing? You should apply – you would suit the present management fine.

        Don’t bother to try to understand the situation facing people under numerous stresses with the major one of the poverty pit and consider how they will reinforce themselves in some way as a coping device, perhaps through drugs, alcohol is common and now we are told that Coke can be deathly. This situation needs more concern and intelligence than you have shown you smug pr..k.

      • Colonial Viper 8.1.3

        WFF breeds poverty – hell take 8 kids live in Invercargill and you will get $678.00 a week (after tax), no wonder you can afford 10L of Coke a day.

        You’re a moron if you think that you can raise 8 kids on $678/wk.

        • Kiev 8.1.3.1

          You are an idiots if you can’t add $540 & $678 together – weekly income is around $1200 and then don’t forget accommodation supplement.

          5 bedrooms – http://www.trademe.co.nz/property/residential-property-to-rent/auction-555132129.htm – $295 per week. Which would still leave around $900 to pay food, power, expenses, etc

          • Colonial Viper 8.1.3.1.1

            You should advertise this fact more widely, Shadbolt would love more people raising their kids in Invercargill.

            BTW do you deny that raising 8 children is equivalent to at least 2 full time jobs? $1200pw is not a lot for doing two full time jobs, especially as these ones are 7 days a week.

            • The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 8.1.3.1.1.1

              What I don’t get, is are they advocating this wage for everyone, or only those with a spouse and two children?

              And, if the latter, are Youth Wages OK with them now?

          • bad12 8.1.3.1.2

            Who has 8 kids these days??? you are obviously a brainless wonder, the average size of the modern family is 1.2 kids,

            So what i said about Auckland, Wellington, and Chistchurch holds true and only a fool would think that families shifting to Invercargill en masse would do anything but force the price of rental accommodation to rise dramatically…

            • Colonial Viper 8.1.3.1.2.1

              I think the threat of young families shifting to Invercargill en masse can be played down for the moment.

              • bad12

                Kiev’s idiocy tho cannot, the fact that ‘it’ cannot think past the end of it’s nose or a knee-jerk reaction would tend to suggest a vast lack of intellect…

          • McFlock 8.1.3.1.3

            Why are we adding 40hr@ $13.5/hr income to the 8 kid Invercargill income?

  9. djp 9

    >About 40% of workers currently earn less

    How many of those workers:
    a) dont have a family
    b) have two or more earners in the family
    c) recieive working for families, housing suppliments or other forms of welfare

    If i had to pull a number out of my ass I would say “quite a lot of them”

    • Lightly 9.1

      or, you could read the report, you know, like a non-chump

    • just saying 9.2

      Which is exactly why I object to the right-wing framing about a living wage. Apparently, the (hard-working) poor should only be almost adequately recompensed so they may “raise families”. Because that’s all the poor are to the rest of society – incubators for the future workers that will look after them in their retirement.

      A living wage to live! – to go on holiday, to eat nice food and eat out, to enjoy hobbies, to go to concerts, to buy some good clothes brand-new, to entertain friends, to surf the net and the waves, to get good haircuts…….When did we start seeing a reasonable standard of living as being too good for more than half the population?

      • djp 9.2.2

        >When did we start seeing a reasonable standard of living as being too good for more than half the population?

        When did you start raising strawmen for a crust? Just because some may scoff at magic wand politics does not mean that they want people to be poor.

        Minimum wage increases are made possible by economic development they do not drive it. A minimum wage in a 3rd world country would put half the country out of work and is clearly unfeasible, in a developed country a minimum wage puts a minority at the margins out of work but it is a small enough number that can be (stupidly) ignored, of course the higher you set it the greater (as in more negative) an effect it will have.

        The same drivers that would help the poor in Bangladesh (education, investment, womens rights…) are the same drivers that will help the poor here, minimum/living wage is not a silver bullet its is a sideshow

        • just saying 9.2.2.1

          Tell me more.

          How exactly will “education, investment and women’s rights” increase the pay of cleaners, labourers, caregivers for the elderly and disabled, retail workers etc.? In concrete terms?

          NZ is richer than it has ever been before. However, the proportion of wealth going to workers compared with that going to management, rentiers and shareholders, has changed drastically in my lifetime. The list above (surfing aside) is of just some of the things I took for granted on top of being able to pay the rent and other living expenses from my entry level job when I was 20.

          Nothing magic about it.

          edit: everything on your list has increased in the last 25 years and yet wages, in real terms have continued to decline

          • djp 9.2.2.1.1

            >The list above (surfing aside) is of just some of the things I took for granted on top of being able to pay the rent and other living expenses from my entry level job when I was 20

            Anecdotes are easily countered. It seems to me for example that purchasing power for the middle and lower socio-economic classes has never been higher (families have more cars, tvs, toys etc then ever). You pick a few things that interest you (holidays, haircuts and clothes) but perhaps many others prioritize different goods.

            • Colonial Viper 9.2.2.1.1.1

              Jobs paying less than $35K pa aren’t worth doing.

              • djp

                Tell that to a teenager living with his/her parents

                • Colonial Viper

                  Sure but that teenager gets fed and housed for fuck all. What about the other 96% of the work force not having their laundry done by mum and dad?

            • just saying 9.2.2.1.1.2

              They don’t particularly “interest” me. I simply took them and many other things for granted.

              The “puchasing power” for the poor has never been lower because the poor have never been poorer. They can’t afford essentials like good food, housing, power and health costs.

              You still haven’t explained how wages for the worst paying jobs will improve with “education, investment, and women’s rights” – because those jobs will still have to be done, and not everyone is able to be a “professional”.

        • Murray Olsen 9.2.2.2

          Brazil has had a minimum wage for quite a while. Ever since Lula became President, it has been going up. Brazil is a third world country. Its statistics for poverty, homelessness, hunger, illiteracy are all improving. djp has a third rate mind. I cannot see this improving.

  10. Afewknowthetruth 10

    Peak Oil is in the process of demolishing the economy and all the delusions that go with it.

    Offering high interest to foreigners to loan us money to prop up present living standards has helped keep the delusion going, but even with the dollar at 84 cents US petrol is over $2.20 a litre. Just think what fuel would cost if the Kiwi dollar were at the 2000 exchange rate ….. around $4.00 a litre. And we wouldn’t be buying anything like as much Chinese-made consumer goods.

    The ‘death by a thousand cuts’ will continue. Indeed, the collapse of industrial living will accelerate, due to declining EROEI, environmental collapse and unravelling of fiat currencies.

    Best not to think about reality: fantasy is so much more appealing.

  11. Food prices and accommodation prices well exceed the minimum wage, under the National economy they will keep rising and even a $20 hr wage rise would not be able to keep pace. But the decent jobs aren’t here and multinational corporations won’t create jobs, nor will decent jobs ever be here till subsidies and benefits are introduced to get exporters up and running again.

    National refuses to intervene in the economy, continues to cannibalize the military (sacked servicemen leave to Australia), and won’t provide any incentives beyond turning NZ into a third world country; things will keep getting worse.Time for a change of government, and no more broken promises from neo-liberal, austerity vultures that prey on the worst off.

  12. Richard Down South 12

    Im looking for work, as well as working part time (2-4am starts)… my work employ’s people part time so theyre not reliant on skilled workers… if someone leaves or the likes, they’re replaceable… I’m paid minimum wage… and thus get topped up by WINZ… Luckily for me I am single and live in Invercargill (which sucks but financially its a little easier some ways, but some ways its not). Im pretty much living week to week. I have been applying for alot of jobs, but the market is indeed insane… so many people applying for jobs. A friend in Dunedin has a degree in IT, and got turned down by McDonalds. I desperately want full time work, or a second part time job…

    This sort of thing is important… employers must realise that if youre not paying someone enough to cover a reasonable standard of living, when can your employee’s help the economy by buying things

  13. Tiger Mountain 13

    ShonKey and the 1%ers are not running a country adequately in any way, but they are certainly running it into the dirt. Richard Down South describes what my 22 year old graduate son and most of his graduate mates are going through.

  14. tsmithfield 14

    The “living wage” won’t be a “living wage” for very long. If employers pass the costs on, then the end cost to consumers (including those on the “living wage”) will go up.

    It will be great for my company which deals in aspects of automation. We will have more companies approaching us to find ways to automate unskilled jobs that the “living wage” is likely to target.

    So, it seems to me that the consequence will be that the “living wage” will be inflationary and result in higher unemployment.

    • Colonial Viper 14.1

      It’ll be a great thing to see Kiwi companies investing in new technology and capital equipment for a change. Usually they are too lazy and cheap, relying on slave wage labour.

      The “living wage” won’t be a “living wage” for very long. If employers pass the costs on, then the end cost to consumers (including those on the “living wage”) will go up.

      Inflation suppression tactics should therefore be used.
      – Ensure investment goes into productive competition, not asset price speculation
      – Drive down accomodation prices (the biggest portion of household expenses)
      – Drive down power prices.

      Employers can still make good money through increased volumes not price hikes. Retailers who choose the price hike route can be priced out of the market. That’s what competition is all about.

      • Afewknowthetruth 14.1.1

        Drive down power prices? You must be mad! Lowering energy prices leads to greater inefficiency and more squandering, thereby increasing the environmental predicament we are in.

    • Tiger Mountain 14.2

      The philosophical question TS is why bother running nation states if not to benefit all the citizens? “Red in tooth and claw” District 9s or some other futurist scenarios are the alternative and NZ is heading there rapidly.

      • Afewknowthetruth 14.2.1

        There are no nation states (well perhaps Cuba, Iran, North Korea etc.) Most nation states are just client states of the global money-lender empire. It suits the elites to keep up the pretence of nation states because that allows them to cash in on patriotism and make money out of internationalised sport etc.

        What is interesting is that, as everything turns to custard, nation are falling apart. In Spain the various regions no longer want to be associated with or controlled by Madrid. In the US there is an increasing movement for states to leave the union. In Greece people leave the cities to search the forests for food and firewood.

        Coming to a ‘nation’ like yours.

  15. Afewknowthetruth 15

    According to the latest report (in the Guardian) the Eurozone has lurched deeper into recession, along with Japan and numerous other nations. Energy demand is falling rapidly in most of the developed world, with China and India using what other nations are not to get themselves into the same mess as everyone else.

    As I have been saying for a long time, we have almost reached the end of the line for the globalised industrial economy. We just haven’t hit the buffers yet.

    Anyone who thinks living standards (as measured by digits in computer systems) are going to rise is living in a dream world.

Links to post

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • EV road user charges bill passes
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April.  “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Bill targets illegal, unregulated fishing in international waters
    New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Reserve Bank appointments
    Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates.  Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Stronger protections for apartment owners
    Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Travel focused on traditional partners and Middle East
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend.    “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says.   Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Keep safe on our roads this Easter
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Cost of living support for over 1.4 million Kiwis
    About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Tenancy reviews for social housing restart
    Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary plan halted
    The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Cutting all that dam red tape
    Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track.  “Dam safety regulations ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Drought support extended to parts of North Island
    The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Passage of major tax bill welcomed
    The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Lifting economy through science, tertiary sectors
    Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government announces Budget priorities
    The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says.  The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government to consider accommodation solution
    The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Government approves extension to Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care
    Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says.                                         “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • $18m boost for Kiwis travelling to health treatment
    The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says.   “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • PM’s Prizes for Space to showcase sector’s talent
    The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Concerns conveyed to China over cyber activity
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government.     “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry
    Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function.  The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Brynderwyns open for Easter
    State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech to the Infrastructure Funding & Financing Conference
    Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Parliamentary network breached by the PRC
    New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ to provide support for Solomon Islands election
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ-EU FTA gains Royal Assent for 1 May entry to force
    The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union.    “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • COVID-19 inquiry attracts 11,000 submissions
    Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says.  “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Families to receive up to $75 a week help with ECE fees
    Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Unlocking a sustainable, low-emissions future
    A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Chief of Army thanked for his service
    Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders
    25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government commits nearly $3 million for period products in schools
    Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech – Making it easier to build.
    Good morning, it’s great to be here.   First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning.  I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Pacific youth to shine from boost to Polyfest
    Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • 2024 Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships announced
    ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Breast Cancer Foundation – Insights Conference
    Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Kiwi research soars to International Space Station
    New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to the New Zealand Planning Institute
    Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Support for Northland emergency response centre
    The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed.  “Northland has faced a number ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Celebrating 20 years of Whakaata Māori
    New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Some commercial fishery catch limits increased
    Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-29T15:16:10+00:00