Posts Tagged ‘productivity’

Covid-19: Back home again

Written By: - Date published: 1:49 pm, March 17th, 2020 - 2 comments

As a programmer, I’ve had a lot of experience with working from home for work, last time was about 13 years ago. Yesterday we got shifted to working from home. The toolkit has changed a lot even in the last few years. What is going to be interesting for me is to see how companies disperse their employees out in the same way over this pandemic – that will be a real test of productivity.

Bernard Hickey: Bill English’s Trump-like denial of a productivity problem

Written By: - Date published: 7:03 am, September 2nd, 2017 - 84 comments

Being compared to Trump has got to hurt. And shouldn’t there be consequences when a PM flat out lies to the country on the state of the economy?

The case for higher wages

Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, April 26th, 2017 - 31 comments

In the warm afterglow of the huge wage increase for health care workers the case for addressing NZ’s creaking low-wage economy is getting some recognition (along with the effect of immigration on wages).

Holding back our productivity

Written By: - Date published: 7:17 am, April 14th, 2016 - 72 comments

Our “business leaders” are doing an objectively poor job. Perhaps instead of insulting Kiwi workers as “pretty damned hopeless”, Bill English should be taking aim at these captains of industry.

Jobs and wages

Written By: - Date published: 8:46 am, February 6th, 2016 - 54 comments

Boring stuff about boring old jobs and wages.

The lie about productivity and wages

Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, February 5th, 2015 - 49 comments

The Productivity Commission has a new report out which looks at changes in the labour income share, or LIS, from 1978 to 2010. The labour income share is described in the report’s summary as: The labour income share (LIS) measures the split of national income between workers who supply labour and the owners of capital. […]

The wage gap and the productivity lie

Written By: - Date published: 11:42 am, March 28th, 2013 - 23 comments

New figures show that the wage gap with Australia is still increasing. National has nothing to offer but useless policies and excuses, while the captains of industry trot out the old productivity lie again.

Re-run: Unemployment up, productivity up

Written By: - Date published: 2:42 pm, March 16th, 2011 - 9 comments

As I predicted in this post last year, productivity has risen sharply in the latest stats but for all the wrong reasons.The Herald gushes “NZ employers squeeze more out of fewer workers” but that’s fundamentally wrong. We’re getting less out of even fewer workers. “Labour input” fell 4.3%, while GDP fell 0.8%. Why anyone would think this is a Good Thing is beyond me.

The productivity lie

Written By: - Date published: 10:29 am, February 8th, 2011 - 24 comments

The Nats have upped the minimum wage by 25 cents.  An increase of 1.9% that doesn’t even keep up with inflation of 4% and is thus a minimum wage cut.  On cue a tame economist opines that wage growth can only happen if we achieve productivity growth first.  The only problem with this excuse is that over the last several decades productivity has grown significantly, and wages haven’t followed…

Shifting the centre

Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, November 30th, 2009 - 51 comments

Well the productivity task force is reporting back today and some of their ideas have been forward released. As we expected they are a grab-bag of unpalatable, short-sighted and frankly mad measures from the loony right including putting interest back on student loans, flat tax and means testing free childcare. As the official announcement comes […]

Unemployment up, productivity up

Written By: - Date published: 8:51 am, November 9th, 2009 - 9 comments

Like here in New Zealand, unemployment continues to climb in America. And one of the results is soaring productivity. (sources: 1,2) But wait, isn’t higher productivity good? In normal circumstances, yes, when it comes about from capital deepening (ie businesses investing in equipment rather than taking profits) or a more educated workforce. But productivity will […]

Same old failed ideas

Written By: - Date published: 2:50 pm, July 22nd, 2009 - 27 comments

The Government’s 2025 ‘productivity’ taskforce led by Don Brash will almost certainly come up with all the same old failed ideas that got us here in the first place. Expect a variation on the following themes: Scrap the minimum wage Privatise public assets Cut taxes for the rich Slash the public sector Deregulate, deregulate, deregulate […]

Gordon Campbell on Treasury and the resurrection of Brash

Written By: - Date published: 1:33 pm, July 22nd, 2009 - 12 comments

Gordon Campbell has a great piece over at Scoop about Treasury’s latest ideological outburst and the resurrection of Don Brash. He points out the futility of choosing a man who played a large role in creating our wage gap with Australia in the first place to head a commission designed to close it: Brash wants […]

Fran pumping Brash for productivity taskforce

Written By: - Date published: 11:34 am, July 8th, 2009 - 18 comments

A few weeks ago the NZPA reported that the Government had agreed to establish a taskforce to “work on ways to close the productivity gap between Australia and New Zealand”. The taskforce would be selected by ACT leader Rodney Hide and would be announced within the month. The story then sank without a trace. So […]

Key on wages

Written By: - Date published: 8:09 pm, March 18th, 2009 - 93 comments

Key’s speech to the CTU today showed an interesting inight into how he thinks you lift wages. NZPA reports: He said it was not good enough for New Zealand to be in the bottom third of the OECD for per-capita incomes, but was cautious about tackling the issue by lifting minimum wage rates. “In reality, […]

Key promises productivity magic

Written By: - Date published: 6:50 am, June 19th, 2008 - 47 comments

Key reckons he could bring down inflation by targeting ‘low quality’ government spending. How? To counter inflation, you need to increase productivity. Inflation is projected to run at 4.7% this year. The Government makes up a third of the economy. If Key was to bring that down to 2% by increasing Government productivity how much […]

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