xizzles

That may have been true some 20 or 30 years ago, but I reckon you're out of date and out of touch with the reality today. And don't mistake the Confucianism traits of filial piety, obedience and state above self as an inability to "think outside of the box" - the late Lee Kuan Yew certainly showed the old Empire a thing or two about how to run a country, during his lifetime.

Yup, you should listen to your own advice sometimes

Beoz

That's fine. It certainly hasn't filtered through to the many Malaysians, Singaporeans and Indians I deal with on a daily basis. Though I do find the Koreans a little better. Indians are the worst. Of course this sentiment of mine is a big generalisation and I acknowledge that. There are always gold nuggets in there.

the troubadour

Actually geezer is bang on the money. Outside of a rather narrow field academics don't tend to fare anywhere near as well as semi skilled/skilled labourers.

the troubadour

No it isn't. There is less scope and potential for less reward .

the troubadour

Of course their opinion on how Aussies conduct their business in such countries doesn't also extend very far.

the troubadour

Making pretty darn good sense. Not sure what you don't get about it.

Amazulu

Total garbage, but you know that anyway. On the other hand, you're a pom - a country that is hopelessly class-ridden with narrowly focussed definitions of what you can or cannot be. Many British people, like you obviously, are uncomfortable with anything that does not fit within these class structures. So blue-collar is someone who builds houses, fixes your plumbing etc and white-collar is someone who sits in an office and manages

The definition of BC and WC in the early 21st century is turning into bollocks anyway. There are BC workers who are more highly educated and skilled, with greater earning potential than many WC people - if you ever went to a major iron-ore mine or LNG plant you'd know what I mean

Amazulu

Crap, and why only academics? Plenty of WC earning more than BC - and vice versa and in many areas the definitions of what category a person fits into is become blurred. Germany is another country where many traditional BC earn more than WC and are more highly regarded

Anyway, if you knew anything about economics you'd know that the cost of labour is based on the availability of labour. That's it

Don't let your hatred of Australia cloud everything that you post

Geezer123

Maybe in Perth yes. In the rest of the world no.

Here in the US. You are rewarded for your innovation, work ethic and creativity. in Australia you are not.

The fact is that only in Australia do working class salaries compete with innovation.

Its very easy to compare blue collar and white collar intelligence levels when no one with a brain or drive move to Perth.

Peace.

northlondoner

Yes this is true. As someone who studies economics at uni we were told that the only reason that, doctors for example, get paid higher wages than say, a car mechanic is because there are less people qualified to be doctors around and more qualified people who are car mechanics. If the supply of labour for a particular field is smaller than the demand for that labour then this raises the wage.

I have heard of cases in some countries where taxi drivers earn a lot more than doctors due to this.

Perhaps this is why wages are higher in Oz than in the UK for many jobs. That is in addition to the fact that the Oz minimum wage is equivalent to over £8.50 whereas in the UK it is only £6.50 and this ratio seems to hold for jobs across higher salary levels too.

I also find it refreshing that Australia doesn't have a class system similar to the UK. Over here for example if you get a 2ii degree you will have great trouble finding a "decent" job and employers frown upon it like it means everything, whereas in Oz (from what i've gathered from an Australian student forum), it's not the grade that matters so much (maybe if you've failed and done appallingly this might not be true) but more your experience and how you come across as an individual/how suitable you would be for the role. But then this is only what I have heard.

BadgeIsBack

The situation where BC workers earn more than WC collars has been around for years in both the UK and Australia. It often goes hand in hand with owning your own company and taking advantage of tax breaks, for one example.

As for foreign names, in IT it might be an advantage to have a migrant name as parts of it are so standardised that it's almost expected.

What has happened is that some parts of the skill-set have just become commoditised as a result as there is an assumption the spoken skill is not there. The other side of the coin is that people will notice a standout Anglo name.

BadgeIsBack

hmmm...Australia is frankly more egalitarian in some ways, perhaps in attitudes, and the way people mix, but there is still a class system - it's based on old ties, and BC/WC tiers and classic ideals of stratification and demographics, as we just discussed....

People talk about working class and middle classes as they would in the UK.
It's just not quite so set in stone.

astera

I think the main difference between the US and Australia is that the former do a much better job at nation building and integration. Of course in the process of doing so they resort to nationalistic propaganda and brain-washing even kids at school.

But at the end of the day Australia is defined by your accent, your ethnicity, how you act (do you come across as a "true Aussie?"), etc., whereas in the US you could be Italian (or even Egyptian) with an accent and still be regarded as a fully fledged American without a shadow of a doubt.

kips

Sorry have to disagree about people getting jobs here based on experience, how you come across as an individual and how suitable you would be for the role.

Too many people here get jobs based on who they know not what they know. I've seen it happen in the private and public sector. It's frightening how many incompetent people there are in senior positions.

supercow

Responding to the OP, in stead of offtopic waffling above: Use your nickname, or make one up. That way you will be able to eliminate the doubt whether it's your first name or not