A hollow gesture
Written By:
- Date published:
10:45 am, September 15th, 2009 - 7 comments
Categories: Parliament, wages, workers' rights -
Tags: helen kelly
Some good comments from CTU president Helen Kelly in the Dom today on the Government’s posturing over MP pay increases.
“The Government is trying to make a hero out of anybody who doesn’t get a pay increase, and I’m worried about that because there are a lot of workers out there they’re putting pressure on to take zero increases.
“In the end [MPs’] wages will be averaged out because when the economic conditions improve … they’ll get a great big pay jolt. That isn’t the case for all the other thousands of workers.”
National has done all it can to freeze wages in the public service and talk down wage expectations in the private sector. This latest hollow gesture should be seen for what it is – especially in light of Bill English’s ongoing housing rort.
[Of course, I’m more than happy for MPs to vote themselves a wage freeze if they like. Hell, why not go all the way and give yourselves a pay cut while you’re at it?]
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And let’s get real. Having your pay frozen on $120K plus is different to having your pay frozen at $42K.
Really? I suppose the person on $120k is living in a state house with the same living expenses as a person on $42k. Whilst I accept that it is not good to talk down pay increase expectation, there seems to be very little talk from Helen Kelly to start looking out your own personal expenses when you know your wages are not going to raise at the same rate as they have in the past. Now is the time people need to give up some of their vices such as Sky TV subscriptions, smoking, pokies, MacDonald’s etc. Irrespective of whether you earn $120k or $42k, these decisions are same.
Really?
Yes, really.
Oh right, so just because the poor have to cut back on their food and heating, does that mean I should have to fire some of my concubines?!?
COME ON!
Turns out the John Key National Ltd agenda wasn’t so secret after all.
That’s crazy talk, BLiP.
Sure, he went around the country telling employers he’d love to see wages drop, and fair cop, he’s calling for wage cuts in the public sector, and sure, his own companies are trying to crack the unions and granted, he’s shown no interest in the massive wage clawback being attempted by Telecom.
But to try and somehow link all of that you’d have to be some kind of conspiracy nutjob.
She is quite wrong to say other workers won’t get a big pay jolt. Labour delivered a number of these in its term in office, the most obvious being 2005 a few months before the election, around 30% for the nurses if I recall correctly.