Will The Government Accept This Report

[grandmoon]

Institute of Public Affairs calls for the abolition of the minimum wage

It has been a feature of Australia’s social safety net since not long after federation - a minimum wage not set just by market forces, but that considers the living needs of a worker.

But the Institute of Public Affairs - an influential free-market think tank well-connected within the Liberal Party - wants Australia’s minimum wage abolished.

The institute’s Aaron Lane said there was a ‘‘moral case’’ to abolish minimum wages to allow people to experience the ‘‘dignity of work’’.

‘‘Our position is an ideological one and we don’t shy away from that,’’ he said. ‘‘This position can be seen as heartless and wanting people to work for a low wage. But it’s about empowering individuals in being able to choose their own employment.’’

Mr Lane said the current system priced thousands of people out of work and forced employers to cut back staff hours.

‘‘I’m not so concerned about the working poor, I’m more concerned about the unemployed poor,’’ he said.

‘‘Continuing to increase the minimum wage is a threat to the dignity of the unemployed.’’

For this year’s minimum wage decision, to be decided by the Fair Work Commission in June, the institute wants to see it frozen at $16.37 an hour, but its longer-term goal is for there to be no minimum wage at all.It is a radical position.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/institute-of-public-affairs-calls-for-the-abol...

[spotweldersfriend]

That Dr should have pretended he was on work experience for 5 minutes and did it for nada.
Work experience in my day was called on the job training and you got paid for it.

[*crikey*mate*]

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@spotweldersfriend wrote:
That Dr should have pretended he was on work experience for 5 minutes and did it for nada.
Work experience in my day was called on the job training and you got paid for it.

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Both of my sons recently did "work experience" in Engineering firms to see if that's what they wanted to do and to suppliment their university studies and to build depth to their resumes for when they do look for jobs in that field - networking abilities too.

I do the same. Example, I wanted to learn how to do Ice Carving, no TAFE copurses for that, so either get a job where the chefs are that can do that or go for some work experience - cos its unlikely an employer will give me a job just so it can teach me how to do Ice Carving, eh? Or last year, wanted to learn about the molecular manipulated foods as developed by Feran Adria at el Bulli.

[boris1gary]

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@spotweldersfriend wrote:
That Dr should have pretended he was on work experience for 5 minutes and did it for nada.
Work experience in my day was called on the job training and you got paid for it.

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Actually, thinking about the op - why pay wages at all, the working class only spend their wages anyway, spend it wastefully really. Be better all round if they were given vouches to use where they are told to. Of course there would always be vouchers for gambling and alcohol, two wonderful industries that need our full support.

[spotweldersfriend]

Companies have got it easy nowadays.No need to weed out the unsuitable applicants when a job comes up i.e no need for an employment office/officer.Get the publicly funded Job Network to do it.

[lurker17260]

Better yet boris - don't give them vouchers. I'm sure their betters know what the working class need. Just provide the minimum required and then you don't have to worry about them doing any pesky thinking what?

[*crikey*mate*]

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@boris1gary wrote:

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@diamond-halo wrote:

well, to be fair, my OH had to pay a specialist $900 20 years ago for 5 minute consultation for a work cover claim.

The Dr, got him to bend to the left, bend to the right, touch his toes, and rotate his hips. That was it. Then wrote the report saying he had 15% movement through his Lumbar region.

That's $10,800 an hour, 20 years ago.

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But the Dr was "dignified" while rorting, I mean working..

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Not sure?

It's who Work Cover said he had to go to. It was their doctor, not ours.

[*crikey*mate*]

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@spotweldersfriend wrote:
That Dr should have pretended he was on work experience for 5 minutes and did it for nada.
Work experience in my day was called on the job training and you got paid for it.

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The piont was, that $5000 for a meeting wasn't actually that unreasonable considering wehat the doctor charged 20 years ago for 5 minutes

[spotweldersfriend]

Replacing notes and coins with cowrie shells would be a good idea.We could shut down the mint and that would save the government money.Perhaps a free trade deal with the Maldives.They could provide the shells in exchange for Australian made floatees,for when rising seas due to global warming start to sink them.

[spotweldersfriend]

That meeting might have taken only ten minutes,halo.That equates to $30,000 per hour. Newmans salary comes from the public purse.If the meeting was about providing a benefit for Queensland and Queenslanders,it should have been free.When money changes hands in that situation,it looks mighty suss.

[just_me_karen]

You've said before,often, that you're studying law economics, right?

So what impacts might a cull on the minimum wage have on local economies? On the wonder economy?