Sunday, December 05, 2021

Luxon is a "big fan" of state control

That's what he said.

He's a big fan of increasing the minimum wage so long as the economy is growing.

Most of the time the economy is growing. So most of the time he's a big fan of the minimum wage.

I'm not. Why?

I go for a part-time job after being out of the work force for 30 years so am happy to accept less than the minimum wage.  Or I go for a job as a sole parent with no work experience whatsoever happy to accept below the minimum wage. Either way I probably won't get the chance/advantage to show my value because the employer must pay what the GOVERNMENT has decided my labour is worth with no UNIQUE KNOWLEDGE of the situation.

It's one thing for a large company like Air New Zealand to absorb minimum wage increases, but this is a country of small to medium enterprises. People trying to get businesses off the ground need to be able to offer work based on remuneration that reflects early-days risk.

I've heard leftists say, if employers can't pay the minimum wage they shouldn't be in business. Come to think of it, that might be their argument for paying the living wage! Everyone in business is 'rich'. Everyone who just started a doggy daycare centre or nail salon.

What New Zealand badly needs from Luxon and National is a freeing-up of laws around employment.

Not an endorsement of state control of the labour market.


4 comments:

pdm said...

I agree Lindsay and in particular we should restore a `youth rate' to enable school leavers and drop outs to get a job and gain not only work experience but also the ethic required of going to work every day they are rostered on.

I suggest $10 to $12 an hour.

Mark Wahlberg said...

In the interview luxon was asked " how many houses someone could own before it was morally unjust, Luxon said he didn’t want to get into talking about it"

When did it become immoral to own legally acquired property? Luxon's refusal to challenge the inferred slur against the ownership of private capital suggests it will be business as usual under his government.

'Luxon" "Nothing to see here, move along please."

Brendan McNeill said...

This is the problem with the pragmatists.

oneblokesview said...

He/they cant do anything until they get on the government benches.
So in the mean time its a case of ""dont scare the horses/voters""

The disappointing part from the Q&A interviews was not Tame trying to be a twerp(he always is).
But ALL Luxons answers where about him and NOT about Nationals policies!

Hopefully he will tune up his responses to twerp questions.