A Fairer Distribution of Wealth

Posted on 08 August 2019

Half Penny and Penny

Currently Australian minimum wage is $740.78 per week.

If you lost your job due to automation, off-shoring services, company bankruptcy, a national recession, or any number of reasons that may be out of your control, as a single person with no children you could possibly receive $277.85 per week from New Start provided you are able to jump through all their hoops.

If you have a partner, then you can expect $250.85 per week.

The poverty line in Australia is considered to be $433.00 per week.

The base salary for a Senator or Member of Australian Parliament is $3,932.69 per week. Though in actual fact, many make more and are given a sizeable superannuation payment each year.

The Australian Prime Minister makes $10,547.30 per week.

This means our Prime Minister is making more than forty times what our poorest people are and more than fourteen times minimum wage.

According to the Federal Treasury department the median wage in Australia is $1,057.69 per week. So the Prime Minister is also making about seven times what an average Australian takes home.

Purdue University in the US using data from Gallup polls determined that the point at which people were satisfied with their lives in Australia is $159,000 or $3057.69 per week. Let’s say that we aimed for that to be our new median wage.

Since the Australian poverty line is determined to be half the median. Let’s reset it to $1528.84 per week and make that the legal base line for social welfare payments. Let’s also increase minimum wage to $2293.26 per week. Personally, I think it should be closer to the median. However, it is more than our current median wage and would potentially ensure two people living together have sufficient funds to achieve life satisfaction.

Now let us put into place legislation that says the Prime Minister, Senators, and Members of Parliament can not make more than twice the country’s median wage and they most especially can NOT make more than four times the lowest social welfare payments.

If a Parliamentarian wants a raise, then the whole country gets a raise! This reduces Federal corruption and ensures greater social fairness. It might also encourage government to tax both wealthy individuals and corporations, so that they are more fairly contributing to the well-being of the nation in which they are creating their wealth. I would also hope it would encourage the creation of a maximum as well as minimum wage rate.

In peace and kindness,

Katherine


2 responses to A Fairer Distribution of Wealth

  • Shawn H Corey says:

    Won’t work. The rich will just counterfeit more money for themselves. What has to happen is that we need to get rid of the concept that you must be employed to live comfortably, or even survive.

    • Katherine says:

      “What has to happen is that we need to get rid of the concept that you must be employed to live comfortably, or even survive.

      I completely agree with this remark! I suppose I’m not as cynical as you about the possibility of citizens pushing through legislation to put a curb on wealth and the misuse of its power. Thanks for commenting! It’s great chatting with you on my blog, Shawn!

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