Re: NYT and pkt seminar

[ecwfm@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (bill mitchell)]

Richard Nolan says:
>Full employment and demand management is hot subject in Aus. as
>reserve bank(equivalent of the fed.) is threatening to increase
>interest rates if there is a wage breakout and/or the government
>doesn't take steps to reduce it's budget deficit more quickly by
>increased tax rates rather than
>the automatic reduction which follws from increased activity and
>increased tax revenue etc..  Interest rates have already been
>increased twice following US rates and the "wage break-out" is a
>response to this.

I disagree that the wage breakout is in response to this or anything. the
fact is that the real wage is continuing to fall even though inflation (due
to the scorched earth monetary policy of the late 1980s and early 1990s and
higher than high unemployment) is below 2 per cent per annum. Work it out.
no nominal pay rises almost anywhere for ages.

the government (labour g. meant to be the political arm of the trade union
movement) playing this free market bullshit game thinking it wins the votes
of the financial market moguls and makes them look like good economic
managers (how anyone would think that with 10 per cent unemployment rates is
beyond me) has decided to introduce what we call Enterprise Bargaining.
remember we have been running centralised wage setting under the judicial
arm of the Arbitration Commission for years.

Enterprise bargaining has become an excuse for no pay rises b/c employers
have just decided not to bargain. then when strike action is threatened they
start talking about penal sanctions.

currently, the unions (particularly the transport workers) are finally
realising they are being dis-enfranchised and are organising and initiating
strike action and are being put under threats of going to court for this.
the govt. nor the employers have not seemed to realise that collective
bargaining brings industrial action to condition contracts etc.

it is a bloody mess. more free market nonsense. the wages system under the
centralised control was much better.

kind regards
bill
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