Of course comparing our median wage to others in the OECD is a shoddy comparrison in isolation of all the other economic factors in those other countries.

How about we set an Australian wage $600.00 per week. This can apply to everyone from brickies labourers to professors of economics, think of the reduction iw our nations wages costs. Good idea? No I thought not, especially for those on 100's of thousands per year, the agruement changes then doesn't it. We must be rewarded for our skills/responsibilities/expertise etc,etc.

There is no greater responsibility in this country than trying to raise a family on starvation wages, if you lot had to survive on a disability pension and raise a child, you wouldn't last a week.

The basic wage should increase by 20% don't worry it will all find its way back into your greedy pockets, as people will buy what they need.

It strikes me that if you cut wage minima, or remove them altogether, that would also adversely affect the several million workers on or not much above the wage minima. Maybe that is why the idea is politically unattractive ?

Maybe we should follow the US lead where the minimum wage has not been increased for a decade and real wages have declined over the past generation. Or we could follow an Australian collective bargaining model which has driven strong wages growth and improved productivity.

I assume Des does believe that employers have a better bargaining position when he states -

The failure to allow individual agreements at wages below the minima is a tacit admission of the trade union case that employers have greater bargaining power and can force wages (or other conditions) down.

I can name a dozen employess in one work place who have had their wages reduced in one work place - becuase their bargaining positrin visa viz the employer was weak.

Changing jobs or relocation for most was not an option - another myth about the mobiltiy of workers - try it in rural australian and see how far you get.

Take away the minimum and wages will plummett - the exploitstion of guest woirkers will accelarate - fairness is not part of the system - you can not assume managers or employers will be fair

Des' thoughts may hold water in an intellectual mutual admiration society but not in the real world.

My fractured logic says, companies will employ the least number of employees needed to run the enterprise at the lowest possible rate of pay. Raising the minimum rate of pay does not reduce the minimum number of employees needed. Lowering the rate of pay does not mean the enterprise needs more staff.

The only difference is that lower wages equal bigger profits. This is exactly what Workchoices is meant to achieve.

Also Des you forgot the tens of millions of illegal workers in the USA and the fact that no job = no health insurance. Apples with Apples you know.

I note that Mr. Moore is very keen to reduce everybody's wages (bar his own, no doubt) to help the "poor people", but nary a word on increasing the productivity of these same people through education and training.

That's not a very rational approach.

I have just seen a news report which stated that 10% of Australian families rely on charities such as St Vincent de Paul for food parcels up from 4% 10 years ago, does that say anything to anyone? These are people on the minimum wage or $1 above.

Take away a minimum wage, watch the 10% increase, some of us are doing it very tough, ,in this prosperous land where the government has enough money for all its reduced serviceses and a lazy %10.8 billion just in reserve, while people are starving, Ah! the LUCKY COUNTRY, lucky for some.