Originally posted by sWaiZZy:
3) Labor unions here are very strong and enforce minimum wages, inefficiencies often occur due to strikes from many service and basic infrastructure sectors which often lead to stops in transport indusries. Being here and witnessing how strikes can affect your daily livelihood is not a fun prospect. Something i appreciate that dosent happen back home. Though they do enfoce minimum wages, i throughly feel it often is a stumbling block for many businesses as all these measures often take out an economic competitive edge that many startups may have.
Minimum wage provides a basic level of sustenance for your citizens, instead of having them exploited by profit motivated multinational companies. Due to the disparity of structure, the multinational is a bigger organisation than an individual worker, therefore it has more market power. The labour unions let these individual workers form groups and protect their interest and balances out the market power that these large profit motivated multinational companies have. Strikes are an un-avoidable consequence, it neither benefits the company or the worker.
Originally posted by sWaiZZy:
I beg to differ, the average Aussie dosent earn as much as Singaporeans and in terms of personal wealth they lag far behind. A simple economic example. Less hours on supposedly more pay but taxed at relavant rates in relation to income scale. ie average ussie earns 100k per year which equates to a $30,550.00 tax bill before various levies. A simple anology, banks here pay fixed deposits in the excess of 6% per annoum as compared to low measly rates in singapore of around 2-3%. What does this tell you? That banks do not hold much liquidity and can easily to afford to pay more on deposits with them. In short, Aussies bo lui and dont save. Testament to many of my uni Aussie friends who i have talked to can testify.
There is nothing wrong with progressive taxation, where the rich are tax more to redistribute income to the poor.
You should make a comparison between the poor of both countries. Is the average low income earner better off in either countries?
Singapore:
An hourly wage earner making S$4.50 an hour, works 10 hour day on a 5 day work week for a year makes:
(5 / 7) X 365 days X 10 hour X S$ 4.50 = S$11,732 a year
After tax = S$11,732 - S$0 = S$11,732
Australia:
An hourly wage earner making A$13.48 an hour, works 10 hour day on a 5 day work week for a year makes:
(5 / 7) X 365 days X 10 hour X A$13.48 = A$35,144
After tax = A$35,144 - A$5,893 = A$29,251
How long would it take for an average Australian making A$29,251 a year to pay off his A$50,000 to A$100,000 home, as compared to a Singaporean making S$11,732 a year to pay off his $180,000 2 bedroom HDB flat?
Maybe my data is not representative of the population, but friends whom I know, students who finally managed to find jobs there after graduation, flight attendants who have travelled around the world, most chose Australia over Singapore anytime of the day. Unless you are those foolish few, that chooses to sink with the Titanic instead of seeking safety in another passing ship.
Originally posted by sWaiZZy:
I am not a PAP supporter, nor am i some planted agent who plants textbook stories in forums just for kicks or am paid to do so. Nor am i someone that agrees with the fact that our quality of life has been eroded and infringed upon by government intervention. I however chose to look at the big picture and have come to support the argument that a hardworking citizen in Singapore can find and make a comfortable living.
You "might" not be a PAP supporter, but you are definitely the product of their propaganda machinery.
Originally posted by sWaiZZy:
Adressing the comments in ministers pay, I only have this to say. There are many other people around you earning silly money doing less work than you, not only ministers, people like your boss. Why not go take issue with them? If there are so many empassioned Singaporeans that take such harsh stances on ministers pay, I have this to say, its a democratic country and there are always trend setters and followers, if you think that its a job that pays so well or too much, work towards that position and make a difference. Step up to the challenge!
There are lots of people killing other people around the world, but by stating that lots of people are doing it, does it make the situation or statement more morally justified? So if everybody is looting and killing, it's alright to kill and loot. Anyway, no country in the world with a 1st world economy and 3rd world civil liberties has $3 million to $4 million salaries for it's ministers. Unless you are living in Manor Farm, where the pigs indulge and splurge on the successes of the worker farm animals.
In a democratic country, the people and citizens who are the true rulers of the country will have a mouthpiece to voice their displeasure and concerns. Unlike an Authoritarian Regime, where the rights to voice their displeasure has been serverely curtailed.
But heres my take on the issue