19 Comments

Real wages are still suppressed though. If business needs more workers try above inflation wage increases

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Yes. That element of the free market seems not to appeal to some business owners.

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This witness does not perform well under cross examination.

https://youtu.be/H1saq0E0l9E

Jack Tame interviews Ardern on Q+A yesterday. Worth watching.

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Yes a tax cut for the poorest would be preferable and with as increase in the wealthiest to recapture it and discourage any inflationary impulse. It’s beyond me why they keep ignoring women and children in their formative years doing vital unpaid reproductive and caring work. Beneficiaries not getting anything shows how perverse they are. As for opening borders instead of training and supporting our own labour force to make immigration highly qualified and vetted instead of exploiting people for low wages and poor conditions is just awful as well. We’ve tried that pattern many times and it’s not good for society or those people. The system is collapsing or under pressure because of the illness caused by the Covid pandemic so let’s hope they’re screening and quarantining appropriately at the border as variants increase and resistance to repeated vaccines which no longer work increases. The thinking by Government seems to be very short term. We do deserve better from all parties really. A lot of this action is irrational it seems to me.

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Beneficiaries are often women and children abandoned by men and institutions (usually) who will not fulfil their obligations properly to their families (in law) so are probably those least deserving of lack of accessing their rights and appropriate support.

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Thanks Peter. It is tough to watch. I suspect many hoping for new detail or plans or accountability have stopped watching. I suspect the phone is off the hook for the Government and the PM now.

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What is the problem with "a serious military conflict

Death, destruction, horror, suffering, trauma....nope, the real issue is that it cause "..global trade disruptions".

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Really good for GDP if I'm beginning to understand correctly.

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I get that ASHJO. No one wants that. But I still have to pull it all back to what it might mean for us directly. A lot, is the answer.

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The unemployment measure is just so false. It ignores so many workers. Take me: - I stopped working at 62 but was never counted as unemployed. And how many part-timers want more work but aren't offered it. Is a gig-worker under-employed or ignored because they are 'self-employed'?

And how do you count those back-packers employers want?

We need a more accurate measure - say 'In Work' which quotes a number that is comparable to the total population, but it may be too difficult to calculate. How do you count the Regional Seasonal Employees, backpackers, part-timers, etc?

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Totally agree Steve!

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Thanks Steve. There is a measure for under-employed, which counts those who have part time work and want more.

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I can't wait for Friday's Ask Me Anything.

Should Italy still be in the G20?

The ECB is just printing money to keep the Italian gov't afloat. And I suppose the other 19 have a vested interest in not wanting to use an economic (as opposed to a political) reason to replace Italy with the current number 21.

Just checked Wikipedia and the G20 are the those with the highest trade, and has no interest in anything other than that. So it includes Argentina, South Africa and Brazil.

The performance of the country's government is irrelevant so I guess Italy gets to stay.

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Thanks Steve. Yes. G20 more of a club than a consistent grouping of the biggest. As with any club, it can invite whoever it likes.

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Did Stats NZ collect any data on how many people retired? The largest cohort of humans in history to retire will be during the 2020s & there's simply less people to take their place, especially Zoomers which are now entering the workforce.

Globally there's worker shortages, so just wondering if a whole heap of people retiring (either because they've come of retirement age, or because they need to be Covid cautious, or in some cases because they died) is a factor? And can NZ expect more retirees holidaying but less backpackers to fill the tourism jobs, for those same reasons?

Also as Steve mentioned below, is the casualisation of the workforce accurately factored in to the stats as well?

Not necessarily asking you these questions Bernard, just putting them out there :)

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Thanks Hamersley. Great questions. In NZ, we have a lot of people getting the pension and working too because there is no clawback, unlike in most other jurisdictions.

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Off topic but on topic for our concerns.

Why does it seem that only comedians speak or see the truth?

Caution contains use of the F word

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HB97iwcm_Qc

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I’m just advised that energy prices and petrol prices have more than taken up the winter energy payments.

Energy needs to be renationalised in the National and security interests and provided at coast plus loans or grants provided to convert households to independent solar power and other clean fuel heating.

Everywhere in the world energy costs are pushing people into dangerous situations with this unjustified price gouging which for the most part we’re built and paid for by previous generations.

Not doing do is negligent of any Government just as not providing these payments to beneficiaries and the poorest is discriminatory in the extreme.

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HI Bernard

I have a subscription to The Kaka which I love

Keen to get my 12yr old set up with his own direct sub - can you help please, I'm having no joy on the website at the moment...

Thanks

Tom

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