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Originally published in The Canberra Times on March 2, 2013

The fact that Gina Rinehart inherited billions of dollars apparently means that people earning $150,000 a year are entitled to feel average. The average income for an employed person in Australia is $58,375.20 a year. The median is $50,076. $150,000 a year is a lot of money. It is not average, it is not middle, it is a lot. At that rate you are well into the top 4 per cent of employees in Australia. This is not to suggest that people earning $150,000 do not feel stressed or anxious or that they don’t deserve more for their effort. No doubt many feel exactly this way, but so too do people working 50 hours a week to earn $50,000 a year. So too do people working part time and caring for disabled children.

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