Minimum/Living Wage

[trev]

When the NMW was introduced the cry from the tories was that it would cost jobs, this has been proven to be pretty much nonsense. Now that there's a call for it to be raised to a living level the same cry is being heard from the same people.
Now we all know that "everyone who claims a benefit is a scrounger" as claimed by the likes of Iain Duncan Smith but here's something that I can't get round. Tesco makes an average of £10 million nett profit per day according to the last set of figures but it pays many employees at such a low level that they are reliant on benefits to top up their wages! Surely that can't be right? At least it isn't to me.
Isn't the government on the side of hard working families? They keep saying they are but then they beat these people with the scrounger stick

 

[Octopus]

When the NMW was introduced the cry from the tories was that it would cost jobs, this has been proven to be pretty much nonsense. Now that there's a call for it to be raised to a living level the same cry is being heard from the same people.
Now we all know that "everyone who claims a benefit is a scrounger" as claimed by the likes of Iain Duncan Smith but here's something that I can't get round. Tesco makes an average of £10 million nett profit per day according to the last set of figures but it pays many employees at such a low level that they are reliant on benefits to top up their wages! Surely that can't be right? At least it isn't to me.
Isn't the government on the side of hard working families? They keep saying they are but then they beat these people with the scrounger stick

Its a scandel..... but when Gordon Brown introduced tax credits, I would imagine that a lot of companies, big and small, calculated that they could hold saleries back and let the tax payer top their meagre wages up.

The biggest losers are the single people without children as they can't claim much.

 

[trev]

Yeah it's very common, I just used Tesco as one example. This is why I think that the next government needs to look very closely at the issue, the taxpayer is subsidising the shareholders of these companies.

 

[Octopus]

Yeah it's very common, I just used Tesco as one example. This is why I think that the next government needs to look very closely at the issue, the taxpayer is subsidising the shareholders of these companies.

Hit, nail & head spring to mind.

Tax credits are a complete shambles and do nothing to encourage people to help themselves:

EG:

One of my misses friends was left in the lurch when hubby fxcked off with another woman. Her friend is a TA and doesn't earn much, as they have kids, so she applies for tax credits and gets an award of over £800 per month.

So anything more she earns now, will be reduced by a reduction in tax credits, and this she has absolutely NO incentive to improve her income.

This is complete madness.

No wonder social mobility has completely stalled.

Another blxxdy mess left by Gordon Brown.

AND

When Iain Duncan smith comes up with a new system which allows people to earn more, and have their tax credits reduced by less, so they are actually better off, he gets shot down!

Go figure

 

[trev]

I'm not confident that IDS's system will make people better off though. He hasn't exactly got the best track record has he? Just about everything he's ever touched has turned to rats poo.
He can't even get his own CV right

 

[Octopus]

I'm not confident that IDS's system will make people better off though. He hasn't exactly got the best track record has he? Just about everything he's ever touched has turned to rats poo.
He can't even get his own CV right

Some of that is certainly right but the concept that would encourage people to get a better paid job and allow them to keep some of the increase is certainly the right idea IMHO.

In my early working life, to earn more you needed to get a payrise or get a new job.

Britain 1998 onwards - if you want more money, just fill in a form and put your feet up = this simply is not correct.

Such handouts should be targeted to the elderly and the infirm.

 

[Marvo]

Can I ask what is the national minimum wage set at in the UK?

 

[trev]

£6.50ph for adults over 21

 

[trev]

Part of the problem is what the government is encouraging. I've mentioned before about the shop owned by Mrs Trev's mate who needed 2 full timers and the jobcentre wanted her to take 4 part timers because it made their figures better.

 

[Marvo]

How much would the same adult over 21 be able to claim on the dole?

 

[trev]

About £60 I think

 

[Geordie Spark]

When the NMW was introduced the cry from the tories was that it would cost jobs, this has been proven to be pretty much nonsense. Now that there's a call for it to be raised to a living level the same cry is being heard from the same people.
Now we all know that "everyone who claims a benefit is a scrounger" as claimed by the likes of Iain Duncan Smith but here's something that I can't get round. Tesco makes an average of £10 million nett profit per day according to the last set of figures but it pays many employees at such a low level that they are reliant on benefits to top up their wages! Surely that can't be right? At least it isn't to me.
Isn't the government on the side of hard working families? They keep saying they are but then they beat these people with the scrounger stick

There's a campaign runing just now aimed at trying to embarass the Tesco chiefs into raising pay. (good luck withthat one)

 

[Octopus]

About £60 I think

£57.35 - but that is just the start, if you can tick other boxes then a variety of other claims can be made.....

 

[Marvo]

I think the issue with a higher minimum wage is that it will make UK businesses less competitive in international markets. This will require that there's import controls introduced to prevent them having to compete with far east products with lower labour costs ....which means higher prices for customers. Or you need to introduce a mechanism that guarantees productivity to prevent local businesses being at a disadvantage with high labour overheads.

 

[trev]

I think the issue with a higher minimum wage is that it will make UK businesses less competitive in international markets. This will require that there's import controls introduced to prevent them having to compete with far east products with lower labour costs ....which means higher prices for customers. Or you need to introduce a mechanism that guarantees productivity to prevent local businesses being at a disadvantage with high labour overheads.

That's what the cry was when it was being campaigned for. At the time you had security guards working for £1 an hour and they had to provide their own dog.
Yes every cost eventually is paid for by the end consumer but come on. Why should the tax payer subside profitable businesses so they can pay better dividends to their shareholders?

 

[Octopus]

I think the issue with a higher minimum wage is that it will make UK businesses less competitive in international markets. This will require that there's import controls introduced to prevent them having to compete with far east products with lower labour costs ....which means higher prices for customers. Or you need to introduce a mechanism that guarantees productivity to prevent local businesses being at a disadvantage with high labour overheads.

When I'm dictator of the world, I'd make the Chinese currency "float" - at the moment its pegged against the US dollar - China has massive surpluses, and the USA has massive trade debts - go figure that one!

All the time such anomalies exist the whole world market is "fixed".

The Chinese currency should appreciate in value massively, making their exports more expensive, and allowing other countries to become competitive.

Thats how I see it!

 

[Marvo]

Why should the tax payer subside profitable businesses so they can pay better dividends to their shareholders?

I'm not suggesting the tax payer should be subsidising anything and TBH I don't know why they are, I'm just pointing out two things, firstly you have to be competitive internationally and secondly the scale must balance so any minimum wage should be introduced with a corresponding mechanism to guarantee that enough productivity can be realised from the employees that are benefiting from it.

 

[Octopus]

I'm not suggesting the tax payer should be subsidising anything I'm just pointing out two things, firstly you have to be competitive internationally and secondly the scale must balance so any minimum wage should be introduced with a corresponding mechanism to guarantee that enough productivity can be realised from the employees that are benefiting from it.

Marvo, the biggest issue the UK faces now, as it has done for about 30 years and its getting worse, year by year, is the shortage of housing. Prices to buy in affluent areas are eye watering, and rentals are no cheaper. This is one of the key issues with the budgeting people have right now.

If immigration were to stop tomorrow and the UK built 300K houses per year for 10 years, then things might get easier, but this is never going to happen.

Politicians go on about the cost of living crisis, but NONE have the bxlls to link housing costs to the growing population.

Increase housing supplies, then prices and rents would level out and probably fall - then our salaries would go further.

We have a fairly big mortgage, but the rental on our house would be double our mortgage.

 

[dingledong]

The people I know on £9~11 an hour now want a raise to keep parity with the minimum wage and I presume so on up the scale.

 

[Marvo]

Marvo, the biggest issue the UK faces now, as it has done for about 30 years and its getting worse, year by year, is the shortage of housing. Prices to buy in affluent areas are eye watering, and rentals are no cheaper. This is one of the key issues with the budgeting people have right now.

I'm trying to connect the dots. How is the the cost of houses in affluent areas connected to the minimum wage?

Increase housing supplies, then prices and rents would level out and probably fall - then our salaries would go further.

We have a fairly big mortgage, but the rental on our house would be double our mortgage.

Why isn't the number of new homes being built being driven by the demand for housing? If house prices fell it wouldn't help anyone who already owns a house, their debt would still be the same and their repayments wouldn't change, it would only help new buyers who don't already own property.