Yobbo,

So, the Malayasian workers who work 7 days a week for $200 per month and live in their factories have a good deal? As those salaries are so good as a result of their greater "purchasing power" I can only assume that life inside their factories must be more wonderful for them than being at home. Why else would they choose to work 7 days a week?

Perhaps Australia's unskilled should emigrate to Malaysia in order to share in their prosperity and the pleasures of a 7 day working week?

Your arguments are circular nonsense. The 'value' of Australian labour, and not just unskilled labour, has fallen because of a global oversupply of labour and could go all the way down to practically nothing if 'free market' forces are allowed to go unchecked.

It suits a minority of selfish greedy overpaid CEOs and their hangers on to to use this oversupply of labour to cause the impoverishment of Australia's workers whilst they rake in salaries orders of magnitude larger than many Australian workers.

In the meantime our manufacturing base has been largely exported overseas, and this trend continues. And we are left with an economy based upon property speculation, the digging up and export of non-renewable natural resources, a lot of paper shuffling, and little else.

This is unsustainable and will lead to the impoverishment of far greater numbers of Australians in the longer term.

We prospered in the past when lower skilled workers were paid decently and it should be possible for us prosper again if we abandon globalisation and economic 'rationalism'.

"Perhaps Australia's unskilled should emigrate to Malaysia in order to share in their prosperity and the pleasures of a 7 day working week?"

Well, people with a disability would certainly be well advised to do that. Countries in which unskilled work is still done at a community level, where family businesses still provide the populace with its daily bread instead of the supermarket don't have the same problems in employing them that we do.

Oh sorry - that's the concern of a different govt department, right? Just as the mental health risks brought about by people missing out on holidays and meal breaks. and the crime problems caused by all those teenagers let loose during said holidays while parents are stuck at the factory are another department's problem?

'Top down' community change - is that what you call this?

And did someone suggest that we didn't vote for it? Now I can't agree with that - for anyone who was listening to what Howard says and reviewing his track record, it was obvious that this would be a consequence of voting for him.

Ah, but "The key message from the past decade is that market-based reforms are good for growth and good for retaining political power. " Well, at least we can feel good about continuing growth ... of the income distribution gap.

Daggett - I wouldn't use Dirt Cheap as some kind of polemic to beat employers over the head with. It is hardly an inspiring book and even your quote from Wynhausen is misleading.
The $200 earnt in the Store per week would also be accompanied by the rent assistance and more than $90 in unemployment benefits. Around $350 for working just 11 hours per week.

Besides, many (not all by any means) use casual employment as a kind of supplement income - it is for mothers who chip in with some extra cash for the family or students in first jobs or helping to pay for university.

Others who need more money often hold a couple of casual jobs or work in low paid permanent jobs to have a regular income.

In the Dirt Cheap example, is it better for someone to work 11 hours at 19 bucks irregularly or 38 hours at 13 bucks every week. Which puts more money in the pocket and provides a regular income stream. I'll give you a hint - not the casual job.

t.u.s.

From many of the comments posted here, one would believe that many feel that what is classed as unskilled, being without certificates or degree or trade, only deserves the most minimal of wages. Many people I know would be affronted to be told that their work is so undervalued. Unskilled covers work such as cleaning, sales - retail and telesales, many older office workers do not have certificates. They just know the job, and know it well. They have 'skills' but are classed as unskilled in the statistics. With the comments raised, I have not seen how these people are expected to pay rent/mortgage, feed and clothe their kids, provide sporting fees etc. It is not about plasma TV's and those who think this is all that a working person thinks about, with their current budget, needs to take a closer look. Is a cleaner who works hard for 8 hours not entitled to a good income?

Where is the line drawn for those who deserve fair and decent wages and those who don't?

As for getting Government handouts when working casual jobs, you cannot get benefits if you are working less than 22 hours a week and not actively looking for work, either more hours or permanent employment. Minimal wages jobs will not only be offered to school age and 'pin money' mothers, it will be offered to the main breadwinner. Would anyone really like to work 3 jobs for a minimum of $12 per hour before tax with the possibility of still being below the poverty line?

Our parents struggled just to put food on the table,could only dream about buying a block of land or the remote possibility of a new car. Is this what we want for everyone? Have we really sunk so low that we are so scathing of hard work with less qualifications,and, only see Qualifications as the right of passage to good wages?
Can someone list the jobs they feel are deserving of a minimum wage, so that the rest of us can understand the yardstick being used

Yobbo
on Malaysia and wages ....

Only the non skilled people would get what you suggested. Last time 'day wages' for simple unskilled labor in Sarawak/Sabah was around $6/day
But a clerk, sales, customer support, etc etc.. people with a trade... they all make considerably MORE than that, and it might be a good thing to zip out to KL via the Airport and fast train and see just how 'poor' they are :) u will return to good ol melbourne feeling thoroughly '3rd world'. There are more Mercedes /square km there than here.

A lady I know has even financed a second house just by doing door to door health food sales. So, for the get up and go type, there is plenty of opportunity.
Same as for here. Maracas said it all, with his cutting lawns, messages for neighbours etc... its a matter of getting off our bums and DOING stuff.

I really get sick of the whining about the 'poor worker' who is often 'poor' economically because he/she has burnt $100/week on smokes and another $80 on grog.

If your employer is a bastard, LEAVE and seek opportunity elsewhere or on your own. I did, and 'it works'. You just have to be persistent and knock on doors, and a bit of confidence doesn't go astray. (and when u've made ur fortune, go back, buy the bosses company and sack him :)

BOAZ_David wrote : "A lady I know has even financed a second house just by doing door to door health food sales. So, for the get up and go type, there is plenty of opportunity."

Just how many more door-to-door salespersons does either Malaysia or Australia need? Of course there will always be a few individuals who will do well in an occupation which does not create any tangible wealth, but the rest of us would prefer to have occupations which allow us to make a useful contribution to society.

There is plenty of useful work out there which needs to be urgently done, in the area of repair to our damaged environment for a start, but somehow the 'free market' prefers to waste peoples' energies on the delivery of junk mail, telemarketing, door-to-door sales and other totally demeaning and useless occupations.

t.u.s., the $13-something on offer to Elisabeth Wynhausen on page 177 was NOT for a 38 hour week. It was for a PART-TIME non-casual role. Her co-worker who wanted a full time job, instead had to work five half day shifts.

"That made him typical of the growing number of people faced with the prospect of growing poverty because they couldn't get full time work - as if it were a commodity too valuable to throw away on the young. His bills were mounting up because he had to make regular payments, like the $70 dollar a month he owed Optus for his mobile phone, and he was $800 in debt he said."

Contrary to your pronouncement on "Dirt Cheap". I think that it is very inspiring and well written.

Elisabeth Wynhausen had put herself out for over 12 months in order to find out what life is reallly like at the "wrong end of the job market". I would like to see those in this forum who advocate cutting welfare and wages for the already miserably paid, claiming that they are doing so with their best interests, do as Elisabeth Wynhausen did.