Posts Tagged ‘minimum wage’

Minimum wage rise a small but important victory for the Left

Written By: - Date published: 1:08 pm, February 10th, 2009 - 20 comments

Great, through concerted pressure the Left managed to force a 9-cent an hour real increase in the minimum wage from National/ACT. A 9 cent an hour real increase is not much but it’s a hell of a lot better than freezing the minimum wage at $12 an hour and letting inflation eat it as National/ACT had planned. The decision […]

On the minimum wage referendum

Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, February 10th, 2009 - 46 comments

The Unite Union has reacted to the Government’s miserly adjustment to the minimum wage by initiating a referendum on tying the minimum wage to two-thirds of the average wage. The principle behind the referendum is a good one. Indexing the minimum wage to 66% would be a huge step towards making sure our lowest paid […]

More than words

Written By: - Date published: 11:20 am, February 10th, 2009 - 33 comments

I see the Maori Party has come out saying the increase in the minimum wage to $12.50 an hour isn’t enough, and that they still support both a $15 an hour minimum wage and a tax-free bracket up to $25,000 (about the full-time minimum wage income). Pity they didn’t do something about it when they […]

Labour calls for $13 minimum wage

Written By: - Date published: 1:51 pm, February 9th, 2009 - 34 comments

Phil Goff has come out strongly in anticipation of today’s minimum wage announcement from the Government with a call for an immediate increase to $13 an hour, rising to $15 over three years. As he points out, if National only increases the minimum wage from $12 to $12.50 an hour as the DoL suggests, that […]

Who cares if it’s just PR?

Written By: - Date published: 10:09 am, February 9th, 2009 - 34 comments

There is a rumour in the Dom Post and the Herald that the minimum wage will be announced today and the Nats are going to increase it to either $12.50 or $12.40 depending on whether it’s Fairfax or APN you’re reading. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was true as John Key knows full well […]

Does raising the minimum wage really hurt employment?

Written By: - Date published: 10:47 am, February 3rd, 2009 - 23 comments

National’s excuse for illegally* failing to complete the annual review of the minimum wage is that it wants to ensure any increase doesn’t cost jobs. So, it seems pertanent to ask, does raising the minimum wage result in job losses? Every year, the Department of Labour, presents the Minister with a regulatory impact statement with […]

Biz NZ opposes minimum wage increase

Written By: - Date published: 10:38 am, January 28th, 2009 - 32 comments

As we reported on Monday, the Cabinet is set to review the minimum wage. The Labour Department recommended maintaining its purchasing power by increasing the mw from $12 an hour to $12.50. Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson will propose keeping it at $12, a cut in the real value of the mw (many expect there will […]

Wage for minimum wage workers set to drop

Written By: - Date published: 6:22 am, January 26th, 2009 - 46 comments

In the Bay Report in December 2007, John Key was quoted as saying “we would love to see wages drop“. Inexplicably, the media at the time refused to accept the report of their small town colleague. Instead, they accepted Key’s various, contradictory excuses – ‘I was misquoted’, ‘I was joking’, ‘I was talking about Australian […]

Farmers workers protest today

Written By: - Date published: 10:25 am, November 21st, 2008 - 33 comments

Workers from Farmers stores in the Auckland area will take part in a ‘Skinny Santa’ parade down Queen Street today to protest against their low rates of pay and for a $15 minimum wage. Most Farmers staff are only paid between $12 and $13.50 an hour and the company’s latest pay offer would give the […]

Will Labour back $15 minimum wage?

Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, October 7th, 2008 - 45 comments

The unions want the minimum wage lifted to $15 an hour, two thirds of the average hourly rate, restoring the historic ratio. The Greens, New Zealand First, The Progressives (I think), the Maori Party* and, oddly, the Kiwi Party are also calling for $15 an hour. Will Labour join them? Labour has an excellent record on the […]

Employment, wages up

Written By: - Date published: 3:27 pm, August 4th, 2008 - 43 comments

Despite the economic slowdown, the labour market is holding up well and wages are up at the record rate. The average hourly wage is now $24, up from $21.90 an hour 2 years ago. That’s a 9.6% increase. Take away 6.1% inflation and the average Kiwi worker is still 3.5% better off than two years […]

Previewing the Nats’ work rights policy

Written By: - Date published: 7:17 am, July 17th, 2008 - 25 comments

The biggest protests during this term of Parliament were against National’s 90 Day Bill when it came up as a private members’ bill. In protests all over the country, over ten thousand workers turned out to oppose having their rights stripped. The Bill was defeated but National has not given up. National has signalled that the […]

Bill to protect workers from labour-hire vultures

Written By: - Date published: 1:44 pm, June 24th, 2008 - 105 comments

Labour, with the support of New Zealand First, has developed a bill based on Darien Fenton’s private members’ bill that will ensure tens of thousands of workers are no longer ripped off by ‘triangular employment’ situations, whereby their effective employer contracts out the actual employment of staff to a labour hire company. It works like […]

On the distribution of income

Written By: - Date published: 10:57 am, May 20th, 2008 - 62 comments

See that line that says minimum wage? Nearly half of kiwis earn less than that. Seven months ago, that was me. I was working removing asbestos contaminated glue from the floor of an office building along with half a dozen other guys. Now, asbestos is pretty dangerous stuff, inhaling a single thread of it can […]

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