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Talking Politics

on the issue of middle class welfare i agree that too much money goes to those who dont need it.
im not sure that is very relevant to the debate about the $5 doctor fee.
 
poppa x said:
And to quote from that esteemed fact checking orgainsation it seems I was wrong.

My calculator works so it's not an explosion of numbers, It's only an increase of 7.286%.
Sorry. I'm sure those 18,753 servants of the people are busy working on our behalf.
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the article suggests about 10,000 were military. to me that is quite separate from the 'public service'.
 
poppa x said:
And to quote from that esteemed fact checking orgainsation it seems I was wrong.

My calculator works so it's not an explosion of numbers, It's only an increase of 7.286%.
Sorry. I'm sure those 18,753 servants of the people are busy working on our behalf.
Click to expand...

haha fair cop Poppa.. and I do agree with your point that a smaller Service is better, by and large. This article is quite good on the issue.. http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/2782930.html

Essentially makes the point that when times are good, public services grow as there is little incentive for governments to shrink them. When times are tough, they tend not to shrink for the obvious economic reason that more unemployment will further stifle economic growth. So the public service "exploded" during Howard's final term and continued to grow (at a reduced rate) under Rudd.

It's not as simple as the public service grows under Labor and shrinks under the Coalition.
 
A simple measure of public servant numbers and punitive action to reduce them is not the answer. Don't get me wrong I believe we waste a lot of money in the public sector, but so many Governments just set target reductions and cut staff but actually don't change anything. The Departments just keep on doing the same things.
What inevitably happens is that good people take packages and leave, many of them come back as consultants because the work hasn't changed.
In the private sector when costs are reduced it is done by investing in technology or changing work practices but in the public sector no money is invested to change anything. Government departments work with out-dated systems and software and there is no push to change the way things or done or really critically look at what is really necessary.
Someone mentioned Campbell Newman earlier and what he has done is the perfect example of how not to do it. Punitive cuts, the best and brightest leave and what remains is even less efficient. Queensland health is basically in chaos, doing the same things with less funding and less people.
I fear that the Abbott/ Hockey push will achieve the same. I hope I am wrong but I suspect not.
What is needed is some long term planning to reduce Public sector cost over the next 3-4 years. It may even require more spending in the short term to work through the requirements and do proper planning.
 
The best way to reduce public sector costs is to ban public unions. It has worked wonders in Wisconsin: http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com.au/2011/07/union-busting-is-godsend-elimination-of.html

Further reading: http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/voters-take-negative-view-of-labor.html
 
Giardiasis said:
The best way to reduce public sector costs is to ban public unions. It has worked wonders in Wisconsin: http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com.au/2011/07/union-busting-is-godsend-elimination-of.html

Further reading: http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/voters-take-negative-view-of-labor.html
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Sure, and if the likes of Gina Rinehart have their way, we will be paying workers $5 a day.
 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/05/gina-rinehart-australia-too-expensive_n_1856744.html

If she had her way she'd be shipping over Africans.
 
poppa x said:
Tha Asian workers can live on $5 a day in Asia.
But in Oz they need $5 to buy a latte and half a cake.
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There are ways around that for the creative employer, pay them almost nothing but provide them with dormitory acommodation and crappy food. Then they don't need to eat out and are happy to save $10 a day to send home to their families.
 
poppa x said:
Tha Asian workers can live on $5 a day in Asia.
But in Oz they need $5 to buy a latte and half a cake.
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I'm doing something wrong. I'm in Asia and a latte + half a cake cost more than $5
 
Hope you guys are being facetious. I employ a number of Asians and and I find them to be honest, clever and very hard working. They are usually not the first into work but they are definitely the last to leave. Their work ethics are impeccable. They are the first to accept tertiary education when we offer it to them (I insist all my staff are studying for either certificates and/or diplomas - it makes them improve which improves my businesses). Plus each and every one of them has sent money home to their parents to help them make ends meet. One in fact saved enough from his salary to put a deposit on a house for his family back in Asia and now pays the monthly mortgage payment.

These people are very good people and please do not get me wrong I have very good, honest and clever Australian Anglo Saxons, Aboriginals, Americans and Europeans working with/for me too.

Lets stop the *smile* about Asians taking our jobs and working for less - lets stop the *smile* about wages in Asia being the reason Asian products are cheaper - the real reason things are cheaper is - those Asian countries do not have the costly and very expensive Statue Law costs that Australia has - every time in my three companies that I turn a corner I can feel one of our three government levels "with their hand in my pocket" and it is not to play with my privates to make me happy. We as Australian businesses are taxed off the map - and of course this has to be reflected in our prices to our customers.

Maybe if we all focused on how we can make this country better for all than whinging and bitching (like Gina Rhinoceros) we may get somewhere. In my opinion we need to focus on what we can do best and improve the productivity in that Industry or Market or Science.........cheers RT
 
Asians is a pretty big catch all. From India to Japan. That's got to be about 50% of the population.

I'm assuming the low paid workers Gina wants to import are from impoverished countries like Bangladesh where labour is very cheap.

The Philippines is another net exporter of labour where the OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) remittances represent 13.5% of the country's GDP.
 
The other way to get past high labour costs is to divert money from labour into capital such as automation and robotics. There are even fully automated fast food take-away stores being developed.
 
Giardiasis said:
The other way to get past high labour costs is to divert money from labour into capital such as automation and robotics. There are even fully automated fast food take-away stores being developed.
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True - but if the population has no money from being put out of work by robots - who will by the goods produced?
 
RemoteTiger said:
True - but if the population has no money from being put out of work by robots - who will by the goods produced?
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People that don't work in those industries. The others will have to re-think their wage demands.
 
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