The confusion is in the thread title. "The workers". Doesn't sound like much work going on to me.

Maybe. Basic economic theory shows that the cost of labour is driven by the availability of labour. That's all. With a small population yet having a strong economy, Australian wages were bound to rise - and this rise made us expensive

but

the same is now happening to places like the UK and US. In my field, electrical design engineering, we have been told over the last few years that the work had to be done overseas because we were too expensive. Well guess what? Wages for what I do are now on a par in the UK and US - if not already higher (3D modellers in Texas are on way over USD100/hr - more than here. Some on GBP60+ in London). Therefore they are going through what Australia went through but on a bigger scale (bigger economies). This is basic economics and has nothing to do with particular countries

the theory is sound because wages in Australia are starting to moderate (more available labour therefore its cost drops)

unions can try and fight this, and may have some short term success, but ultimately the market will have the final say and as I said in a previous post, it will be either done in an easy or hard way

Meanwhile in NSW, the former Labor PM Keating endorsed the policies of the current NSW Liberal govt. WTF?

We have NSW state elections in March next year. The Labor leader is in a neck-and-neck fight with an unidentified person named 'Uncommitted':

agreed but that's in highly skilled highly trained job market, the problem is the vast majority of jobs underneath that level in Australia are also highly paid but with often a low skilled requirement.
That's why the US and UK will remain markedly cheaper for the foreseeable future.
Any company still based in London doing that kind of work is also stupid.Plenty of regional centres in the UK with much cheaper costs and employees can earn less due to much cheaper housing costs. Australia doesn't have that luxury.

It's not just government institutions it's everyone on award wages throughout the country. Probably 70 pct of the permanently employed workforce. It used to be higher, more like 90 pct plus when I first entered the workforce here in 1980. It's actually a case of when in Rome, or assimilation. For instance I cannot take a single day off at work legitimately, they will not allow it. We have to book our holidays and set them in stone with 2 weeks minimum at a time 1 year in advance. That is a non negotiable part of the polarisation within the workplace here in a hell of a lot of instances. This is compounded by the fact, that it is seen as a part of the everyday workplace for everyone to drop a sickie now and again.

Its about assimilation and your old UK ideas coming to the fore believe it or not. I see your reaction as sour grapes and ignorance of the machinations within Australian workplace... It's reflected a fair bit on these boards and most people change their tune after about 10 years in the workforce here. Even the Poms at our place

I agree it will change, it has too.... But it's just been lengthened by another 4 years... and probably wont change till I'm long out of it now.

Edit... one more side point.

If the CFMEU does have any real influence on this newly elected labour government, We'll soon know as the East West link or major infrastructure projects to the same or more value will go ahead very quickly.

Again, the cost of labour is based on the availability of labour - whether it's a construction labourer or a radiologist. The same principle applies. Take your situation. I'm guessing that if you're in the middle east, you're on a very good deal - why else would you live in an islamic f**khole. So why has your employer given you the gig? Obviously he can't employ a local as they're all f**king useless and Mashod from Mumbai or Manuel from Manila are not up to scratch. So he needs 1st world, western trained you - despite your cost. This applies everywhere, to everyone

Back to Australia. The UK and US are bigger economies with large populations, so generally their requirements for labour are not as desperate. But on a man for man basis, Australia has a bigger economy - per capita GDP (higher here than both those countries). So a strong economy with a smaller workforce will mean higher wages. Take 2 other resource rich western countries - Canada and Norway. Strong economies, small population, high labour costs. Both expensive countries to live in and in the case of Norway, much more so than Australia

Saying that, unskilled workers in the shale fields of North Dakota or the tar sands areas of northern Alberta will be on similar wages to unskilled workers in the Pilbara or Bowen Basin

Companies concentrate in areas where there are the available skills that they need - they have to out of necessity (New York for example). So there are engineering companies in London, Reading, Surrey, Perth, Brisbane etc. All high cost areas but most of them make a profit. Wages for the skills I mention can also be not much lower in regional cities either as far as I can see - Aberdeen rates on a par with London. Places like Glasgow and Middlesbrough (wherever the f**k that is) not much less either. So if you're skilled there, you're laughing

Australian labour costs will moderate. AUD falling will make knowledge workers more competitive internationally. It's all linked

A perfect example of high costs killing industry in Australia is car manufacturing, in a couple of years there will be zero manufacturing when the last name pulls out. No industry is going to be able to pay the wages and ridiculous lurks and perks. I said this would happen years ago when a mate went on strike at Shell in Geelong, he was in maintenance and they went on strike u til they were paid penalty rates for going green between jobs in the rain, not working in the rain just walking between jobs. He thought it was hilarious. Last I heard Shell in Geelong get had closed or was closing as it was too expensive. A high wage economy is all very well if every one earns the big bucks but when that isn't the case the poor just get poorer.

You have Singlehandedly made this forum very unpleasant with your bigoted racist unpleasant views and demeanour. Well done you must be so proud.
I will leave you to it, as it appears many many others have.

Stick around, do what many others do and just ignore him, don't engage him at all. He is indeed all the things you say but he feeds on it so just don't feed him

And true to form, Uriah can't hold a debate so resorts to name calling

One of BE's truly great asshats

And his little cowardly sidekick

Maybe I do need to learn to "assimilate" but my ideas are not born from the UK. I did work here in the early 90's when the term "sickie" was used in earnest. - I honestly thought it had been wiped out. Perhaps it is up here in NSW. The workers have voted blue and according to Commonwealth's graph will continue to do so.

Its easy to call sour grapes on this one but do you know what, I really wouldn't like to be in a position where I need to be dishonest and cheat the public who I serve. I know this is hard to fathom but do you know what we do if we don't like our job, pay, or conditions in the private sector? We leave and find a place where we do.

I've worked for myself since I finished my apprenticeship in the late 80's Norman Tebbit told me to get on my bike & I did, no bugger has said I can stop pedaling yet! This whole sickie thing is an unknown concept to me. I work I earn, I shirk I don't.
I read the threads on here moaning about the cost of tradies yet if you factor in all those perks like 10% super, 4 weeks holiday pay, X weeks of sickies etc I reckon we're about on par.

I get 10 days a year sick leave (private sector) and you can be damn sure if I haven't used many in the year (which I don't as I'm rarely sick), I'll treat myself to a couple of sickies. Why use annual leave if you have contractually granted sick leave available?

I've got a couple lined up for Feb next year when the little one goes into day care and the missus goes back to work, I plan on taking a couple of days off sick sitting at home in my pants watching TV by myself all day. Bliss.

I think that NSW is different, as it spent many years under a demonstrably corrupt labour government where pretty much nothing was achieved. I think that O'Farrel did a pretty good job up until winegate - he was pretty moderate as a conservative went, and seemed to really want to get things moving, though questions still need asking about the Barangaroo casino development.

I don't think that NSW voters will be keen to return to the ALP anytime soon though.


S