Media
September 2022
Fair Work Commission data shows that unions deliver higher wages
Enterprise bargaining agreements deliver better wages, but union backed ones deliver the best.
They didn’t cause the inflation, but workers are expected to cure it
Last week before the House Economics Committee, the Governor of the Reserve Bank made it clear that the current rise in inflation has nothing to do with wages growth. And yet he also made it clear he expects workers to bear the brunt of the cost that comes from slowing inflation.
A strong tax base reduces inequality
A strong, progressive tax base and quality public services are the keys to reducing inequality
Uncle Jack Charles & the King
The spectacle that has accompanied the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second is something to behold. But the pomp and pageantry do little to conceal the faintly ridiculous aspects of being a constitutional monarchy, where leadership is conferred not by merit or means of election, but by divine right and accident of birth.
Sweden can meet challenges while upholding humanitarian principles
Sweden’s Social Democratic Party has narrowly lost office since last weekend’s election, after governing in coalition or alone for the preceding eight years and for an extraordinary 73 of the past 90 years. The defeat follows a rise in support for a far-right xenophobic party. Had the Social Democrats been returned for a third consecutive
Safeguarding the ability to increase emissions
Labor’s climate bill cleared the Senate last week. It’s a pretty modest bill, and doesn’t include any measures to actually reduce emissions in the private sector. That’s where the Safeguard Mechanism comes in – which is a voluntary scheme that affects the nation’s biggest industrial emitters, and is the Government’s main policy it will use
‘Green Wall Street’ in Australia won’t save the planet. Markets value profits, not platypuses
Neoliberalism can’t and won’t fix our climate crisis or save our endangered species from extinction. Market-based policies have failed spectacularly when it comes to aged care, disability care and saving the Murray River. But despite the catalogue of catastrophe, earlier this month Tanya Plibersek said: “Ultimately, I would like to see the market truly valuing nature,
The latest data shows just how bad housing affordability is
Since the Reserve Bank began raising interest rates in May, the housing market has very much come off the boil.
A record number of people are working more than one job
The past 2 years has seen a surge in the number of people working multiple jobs
The cost of the Stage 3 cuts
The Stage 3 cuts will cut revenue that could be used for much needed services and programs
Boothby Voters Support Action on Gas & Coal as Pacific Leaders Call for Moratorium
New polling research shows a majority of voters in the marginal seat of Boothby think Australia has some responsibility for the pollution caused by burning our fossil fuels overseas, and more voters in the seat support a ban on new gas and coal projects than support allowing them to go ahead. The research comes as
Ten years of productivity growth, but no increase in real wages
Ten years of productivity gains has resulted in a zero increase in real hourly wages
The GDP figures show the ongoing shift of the national income to profits
The June quarter GDP figures released by the Bureau of Statistics showed that over the past year the economy grew a seemingly strong 3.6%.
What happened at the Job Summit?
This week on Follow the Money Ebony is sitting down with Greg Jericho to discuss the Jobs Summit: what happened, why was it needed, and are we going to get any jobs out of it? This was recorded on Tuesday 6th September 2022 and things may have changed since recording. The Australia Institute // @theausinstitute
We pay billions to subsidise Australia’s fossil fuel industry. This makes absolutely no economic sense
Fossil fuel subsidies from major economies including Australia reached close to US$700 billion in 2021, almost doubling from 2020, according to new analysis by the International Energy Agency and OECD. These subsidies are expected to keep rising in 2022 as governments worldwide attempt to use fossil fuel subsidies to shield customers from the high energy prices caused
The share of GDP going to workers hits a record low
The latest GDP figures show more than ever before workers are getting less than their fair share
Profits continue to grow faster than wages
Profits continue to soar ahead of wages
Polling: Territory Rights & Voluntary Assisted Dying
The Australia Institute conducted polling research of a representative sample of 1,005 people across Australia about their views on Territory rights and voluntary assisted dying (VAD). The results show nationwide high support for VAD and for the Commonwealth allowing the Territory governments the right to legalise VAD in their jurisdictions, including majority support across all
Let the Parliament (and the Assembly) decide
Canberra often leads Australia on policy reform, but now it’s time for the Parliament of Australia to stop getting in our way. Canberra often and unfairly cops the blame for the contentious decisions of elected representatives sent here by the rest of the country, but for the past 25 years it is the Parliament that
Breaking promises isn’t easy. Keeping the wrong ones is just as painful
The truth hurts, which is why it will be painful for Anthony Albanese to come clean with Australians about how wrong it would be to spend $240 billion on tax cuts, the bulk of which will go to very high-income earners, mainly older men. Breaking promises is never easy, but keeping the wrong promises is just
The Woke Agenda
In this episode we’re unpacking something a little different, something a bit outside our usual discussion about the economy. As Defence Minister Richard Marles lifts Peter Dutton’s ban on some charity and diversity events in Defence, we dive into the term ‘woke’. What does it mean? Why is it dominating the culture wars? Dive in
The latest emissions figures show just how far Australia has to go
Counting land use might make things look better, but it is a fake picture of Australia’s emissions
The PBO reveals just how much the Stage 3 tax cuts favour the wealthy
The Stage 3 tax cuts, which will essentially create a flat income tax system, have always been clearly biased towards high-income earners. For those earning over $200,000, the tax cuts represent a 4.5% cut compared to just 0.6% for someone on the median income of $60,000. But this week, the Parliamentary Budget Office has released costings that detail just how skewed the allocation of money is to the richest in our society.
August 2022
New data shows how the Stage 3 tax cuts massively favour the wealthy
77% of the benefits of the Stage 3 tax cuts will go to the richest 25%
Polling Research: Give Junk Food & Gambling Ads the Punt
New polling research reveals a majority of Australians agree that junk food advertising during children’s viewing should be banned, and an overwhelming majority support a ban on TV gambling advertisements. A majority of Australians also supported bans on alcohol and tobacco advertising on TV, and more agree than disagree that ads promoting fossil fuels should
So-Called Biodiversity Certificates Scheme Another False Solution to Tackling Environmental Crisis
The Labor Government has today announced the creation of a biodiversity certificates scheme which would see the conversion of Australia’s ecosystems into a new type of tradeable credit that would be traded to ‘compensate’ or ‘offset’ damage to the environment. “The Government’s announcement of a new ‘biodiversity certificates scheme’ raises concerns of more false solutions
Real wages have not kept up with productivity
When you count earnings per waged hours it is very clear that real wages have not kept up with productivity
At a time when low income earners are struggling, we cannot allow the rich to get richer
A massive tax cut worth $240bn over the next 10 years is set to come into effect in 2024. But this tax cut will not help those who are struggling the most. It will not help those on low incomes. People earning $45,000 a year or less will get nothing at all. Meanwhile people earning
Us versus Them
When you think about Australia’s entire economy, what share of that pie do you think goes to workers (via wages) compared to business (via profits)? The Business Council of Australia is making some bold claims that the profit share of income has fallen, but does the data back that up? In this episode we unpack
Market power costs consumers, workers and the whole economy
For most of the past 40 years whenever the discussion turns to the need to lift productivity, invariably the conversation is dominated by business groups and various media commentators who suggest the solution is more labour market flexibility. Just a bit more flexibility and productivity will improve!
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