Minimum wage

[Sangoma]

Reading the thread about domestic help raises an interesting question.

What would happen in the Philippines if a minimum wage for domestic workers and agricultural workers was introduced and enforced?

Who would gain, and who would lose?

Who would be in favour of it, and who would oppose it?

[keithAngel]

Reading the thread about domestic help raises an interesting question.

What would happen in the Philippines if a minimum wage for domestic workers and agricultural workers was introduced and enforced?

Who would gain, and who would lose?

Who would be in favour of it, and who would oppose it?

They have it in Thailand doesnt stop explotation though of Hilltribes and people desperate to work from having there income only on paper

[Sangoma]

They have it in Thailand doesnt stop explotation though of Hilltribes and people desperate to work from having there income only on paper

Yes, I can imagine it is fiddled, that is why I said if it was enforced, otherwise it would have little effect anyway.

[andypaul]

most seemed to be cash in hand and so the goverment doesn't see what they earn.

[telford]

mostly filipino family have domestic helpers,especially those who are working couple.domestic helpers are like our right hand and it doesnt cost that much.if thier salary will also be minimum wage,how can we afford it?
we pay our domestic helper 100pesos aday and she's already happy with it,coz mostly helpers here have only 1500 pesos a month. cheap coz were living in the province.

[KeithD]

Minimum wage is a myth.

Put the wages up, the company puts the prices up, consumer pays more out their own wages so they get less value. :doh They then usually have to pay more taxes, more money for Mr Brown. :action-smiley-081:

[keithAngel]

Thanks for making that easy to understand

The thing that bugs me is that if you are a "minimum" wage earner you have no chance to live simply without further subsidy tax credit,council tax rent ect even when I was in my 20s I could pay my rent and still live ok on £18 a week now on £200 plus no chance rent can easily be £5-600 or even £1000 in London there is no feeling of being in control of ones life at this level:Brick:

Doesn't affect me now of course but its must be tough for those it does

[KeithD]

Tax credits & dropping the 10% is all a government ploy to put more civil servants in a job, nothing more. It could all be simplified by dropping all tax credits, lowering taxes, and adjusting the rates. However that would put 1000's out of work.

[David House]

Tax credits & dropping the 10% is all a government ploy to put more civil servants in a job, nothing more. It could all be simplified by dropping all tax credits, lowering taxes, and adjusting the rates. However that would put 1000's out of work.

Don't you think that is maybe just a tad simplistic? Achieving wealth re-distribution and fairness in society, without significant impacts on growth, is a difficult economic task. Every system has winners and losers, and unfair examples at the margins.

[keithAngel]

Lets go further maximum rent benefit capped at 300 a month stop using our money to prop up the inflated propety market

[KeithD]

Don't you think that is maybe just a tad simplistic? Achieving wealth re-distribution and fairness in society, without significant impacts on growth, is a difficult economic task. Every system has winners and losers, and unfair examples at the margins.
Simple is better, especially when simple has just about the same effects, as the current one is over complicated, costs £Millions to run, and does more for the rich, and less for the poor.

While I'm at is, anyone on beneifts could do some kind of community service, Stephen Hawkings manages to do more work than 100,000's on Incapcity, I think that proves something is terribly wrong with the system. I should know, I'm chronically disabled, and run my own company, gamble professionally, and all kinds of things. If you can move a finger, you can make money.

[Sangoma]

mostly filipino family have domestic helpers,especially those who are working couple.domestic helpers are like our right hand and it doesnt cost that much.if thier salary will also be minimum wage,how can we afford it?
we pay our domestic helper 100pesos aday and she's already happy with it,coz mostly helpers here have only 1500 pesos a month. cheap coz were living in the province.


I think this hits the truth of the matter.

Most people who employ people at low wagesm are not earning high wages themselves, and could no afford to pay minimum wages to domestic/agricultural helpers.

The result would be that the very poor who now manage to survive as helpers, would lose their means of survival.

The practcalities of it are not seen by the do-gooders, who often shout the odds from the other side of the world, sitting in their comfortable arm chairs.

When it comes to factory workers, there is the economic cycle to consider, and just raising wages does not make anyone automatically and permanently better off.

It is unfoirtunate that wealth has to filter down, redistribution will not work unless the people who receive the redistribution are able to create anything from what they receive.

[David House]

I totally agree about ensuring that everyone who is able to should earn their benefit through community service. I detest laziness as much as anyone but there are also those who are genuinely in need, and it is a test of our demorcracy as to how we respond. The aim must be to create a level playing field and then allow endevour and aptitude to sort out the winners and losers. The problem is creating the level playing field. Stephen Hawkings might be physically highly disabled, but is blessed with a high intellect. We live in an unequal society, with huge regional variations, so need a complicated system to try to create some fairness of opportunity.

[LEAHnew]

Arroyo signs law on tax exemption for minimum wage earners

MANILA, Philippines – (UPDATE) President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has signed into law a bill that would exempt minimum wage earners from paying income tax and increasing personal exemptions for other employees.

......................

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20080617-143153/Arroyo-signs-law-on-tax-exemption-for-minimum-wage-earners

As I've heard its good news:rolleyes:
But not sure yet who would be benefit a lot:Erm:

But smells election is coming... thats why...:cwm24::D