Posted by Jake on Saturday, May 10, 2014 with 7 comments | Labels: Article, Austerity, Big Society, credit crunch, inequality, jobs, Poll
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An interesting graph from the "New Direction" foundation (founded by former prime-minister Baroness Thatcher) sheds some light. The graph from a 2014 report shows the cost to an employer of putting £1 into an employee's pocket - after income tax and National Insurance (employee's and employer's contributions) have been paid - is close to the lowest in Europe. Only Malta, Ireland and Cyprus are lower.
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Because of the exponential application of technology, we have now passed peak employment for all job sectors except for those at the very top, ie: top executives/ officials in such fields as government, science, universities, nonprofit, healthcare, culture, and the media. Wages of the many are being transferred to the capital of the few at an alarming rate. The old anti-Luddite arguments no longer apply We have entered a completely different situation, for which we need to find new solutions, and fast! We should consider a national social wage. Higher, progressive taxes for those who benefit most from our nation's resources and infrastructure, ie: better off individuals and businesses, are an urgent necessity.
ReplyDeleteAgreed re diagnosis; not sure about the proposed solution.
DeleteBring back the Bradbury £.
ReplyDeleteUnconditional Basic Income - All citizens are paid an income e.g. £1000 per month. The personal circumstances make no difference to the payment! So unemployed, sick, super rich, fireman, doctor, student, all still get the payment until they die. Funded by the now obsolete welfare cash, closed loopholes so NO tax avoidance or evasion and a Robin Hood Tax. Economy is kick started as the only people who spend are those at the bottom.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree and it's why I vote Green :)
DeleteShareholders, rewards for directors and fear are the main reasons.
ReplyDeleteAt the moment, it's an employers' market. Workers know that many companies use zero hours' contracts, or require their employees to register as self-employed. They're not likely to leave a seemingly stable job for one they're at all uncertain about and so if they're not going to leave, employers are less likely to feel they need to increase wages.
Since the recession, shareholders feel that they can't guarantee long-term financial gain from their shares. So they want as much as possible in the short term and shares are more valuable where profits are greater and profits are greater when overheads are lower.
Finally, Directors etc are rewarded by boards and head-hunted by other companies if they are seen to do a good job. One part of their job is to make sure profits rise and one way of doing that, as discussed already, is to keep wages low.
These days, staff are not rewarded for their work, merely compensated for the time (in some cases, only some of the time) they spend working. Skills and experience are worth nothing anymore, unless the skills and experience are in directly controlling the money in and money out in a way that benefits the shareholders.
Sweatshop Britain. Where I live there aren't many jobs around and employers know it. Zero hours contracts are over subscribed and abused. Although it dies suit the few, you want to try working a home and a mortgage on one. You can't. So fewer people have any disposable income which effects the spending in the high street in poor areas so the re isn't any growth or development. Minimum wage zero hours jobs are very common. Where I am ill never be given a permanent contract however hard I work so what's the point. Everybody loses
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