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The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

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Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#111

Post by azan_ »

runtime_terror wrote: post #65
azan_ wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People should realise that they will be the ones paying for it. Prices will increase a lot. People need to be aware of that. Personally I'm okay with that trade-off. Also corporations - when checks and balances work properly, which is frequently not the case unfortunately - are great and net benefit for humanity.

I wonder what would happen to costs if we had a 90%+ tax rate on the ultra wealthy... maybe if all these record profits were instead funneled back into society everyone would be better off AND prices would drop... a system like this would be good for society it seems... we should come up with a good name for that system, tho...

I think its pretty naive to thing that it'd work this way. It's really bad idea. If someone has company that debuts on stock market, and stock price increases let's say 100x times, who is he funneling the funds from? I'd say it's not funneling but creation of wealth, economy is not zero-sum game.

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#113

Post by losvedir »

tsimionescu wrote: post #78
losvedir wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lot of shoulds, oughts, etc. How about this: do whatever you want. Nothing is stopping you from setting up a 3 day workweek co-op. More power to any group that wants to. There are a number out there already. But it's worth considering why it hasn't totally taken over "naturally".

This is absurdly ahistorical. Corporations take as much as they can. If there were no law limiting work to 40 hours / week, they would demand far more - as they had before massive workers' protests forced the current limits.

All the more reason people would prefer to work for a co-op, no? I really don't know why there aren't more co-ops, and am inferring they just don't work all that well. But if there are any regulations or something preventing them from succeeding, I'd love to know about it.

Also, I guess it's worth noting I've been "exempt" all my life (not subject to 40 hours a week), so that particular labor win I guess didn't really cross my mind.

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#114

Post by xg15 »

danaris wrote: post #34
christophilus wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That would be ok in a non-globalized world. In our world, any country that implements those laws will see a lot more offshoring.

Not if that country also legislates heavy penalties for companies that produce their goods in countries with worse labor laws.

Almost like we needed some international worker's organization to put pressure on all relevant countries at the same time...

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#116

Post by BLKNSLVR »

ENGNR wrote: post #44
BLKNSLVR wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tax changes that have been overdue for twenty-odd years to address house prices and attempt to level the playing field between labour and capital. Pity they didn't also change the gas tax.

House tax changes... strong yes Share tax changes... ugh My hope was cashed up bogans would start betting on shares instead of housing/crypto. At least it could be funnelled into something productive

My limited-research understanding is that there shouldn't be a difference between capital gains from housing versus shares, otherwise it's 'picking winners' or encouraging investment in specific directions. Having said that, the 'winner' they've picked is new house builds, which retain some tax benefits. I'm OK with that, without having skin in that game now or likely into the future.

In regards to other comments further down regarding Australia's tax rates being high, internationally Australia is on the lower end.

I believe the (seemingly very loud) naysayers about these tax changes are those who receive much more of their income via 'capital' than via 'effort', and so my sympathies are minimal to non-existent. Sure, I have capital investments that will yield lower returns, but I believe the changes make "the way it works" overall more fair to those who don't have the means to earn means passively.

Cashed up bogans may funnel more of their money into new house builds, which is productive...?

Semi-unrelated addition: To some extent I think that 'owning ones own house' is a motivator to work harder, so as home ownership has grown increasingly out of reach, so has some amount of motivation to actually work dried up. There's an inherent 'participation in society' to owning a home that has an intangible but high value. Whether this has anything to do with Australia's decreasing productivity, I don't know.

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#117

Post by MattDamonSpace »

oompydoompy74 wrote: post #20

Speaking as an American, I don’t give a shit if it increases productivity or not. Productivity has gone up exponentially with technological advancement since the advent of the 5 day work week. We, as a species, should be minimizing work to 3 or 4 days a week with equal overall pay. Corporations should be fined heavily for contacting an employee after working hours. On call should require corporations to pay hefty ove…

Someone doesn’t understand why we have nice things. “Increased productivity”, the thing you don’t give a shit about, is the only reason you’re not living in the dirt and dying of a tooth infection before 35.

If you wanted to live with a QoL of the 1940s you could do so today working 2 days a week. Of course you’d have no air conditioning, shitty food, no running water, etc etc.

You don’t have to LIKE corps but you should at least understand your world before calling for the guys with guns to get involved.

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#118

Post by FpUser »

pixelatedindex wrote: post #48
amazingamazing wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This will never happen for the simple reason that there are some countries whose members are poor and so they are rightfully ready to work harder and longer for opportunities. A more important point is why is it that Americans objectively are richer yet feel poorer?

> A more important point is why is it that Americans objectively are richer yet feel poorer? I thought about this a lot. Some of it is expectation wrapped up in the American Dream. You work hard, and get those rewards. But that isn’t true because life isn’t fair and capitalism isn’t particularly humane or ethical. Some of it is perceived. The people who strike gold without hard work expect to keep striking more gold,…

>"You work hard, and get those rewards."

For a relatively short period it was true. Now majority works hard, lives from paycheck to paycheck and can not even own a house. Most results of what they produce goes to feed ever growing appetites of Musks

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#119

Post by shitloadofbooks »

shell0x wrote: post #83
BLKNSLVR wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tax changes that have been overdue for twenty-odd years to address house prices and attempt to level the playing field between labour and capital. Pity they didn't also change the gas tax.

The tax is already bad here, even without it. I paid $89,000 taxes just for the last financial year because stock gains are added up on top of the income and my partner doesn’t work and there’s no family support allowance here. I can apply Australian citizenship next year but I will leave ASAP after becoming a citizen for Singapore, Dubai or Hong Kong where the tax is < 20%

As an Australian with a family and 2 high-paying salaries paying a LOT of tax, none of those countries are remotely comparable to Australia.

If you hate taxes and fees, Singapore has a 60% Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty on residential property applied to foreign buyers, on top of an already insane property market. There's huge fines and government intervention into _everything_ and a massive high-stress culture.

Hong Kong is equally absurd for property and has a sword hanging over its head, that falls if China ever makes a move on Taiwan; the inevitable US and global sanctions would decimate HK.

Dubai is just a comical option.

Re: The four-day workweek in Australia: insights from early adopters of 100:80:100

#120

Post by mianos »

sumedh wrote: post #96
shell0x wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The tax is already bad here, even without it. I paid $89,000 taxes just for the last financial year because stock gains are added up on top of the income and my partner doesn’t work and there’s no family support allowance here. I can apply Australian citizenship next year but I will leave ASAP after becoming a citizen for Singapore, Dubai or Hong Kong where the tax is < 20%

Why are you not leaving right now?

I'd assume, as an Australian, who works for a HK company and has travelled for work all their life, the long term lifestyle in Australia is probably better than those countries. I love HK and Singo but I am not sure I'd want to live there. But for working, most people here would not work in an iron lung and the socialist government pretty much supports the idea that, if you don't like to work, you shouldn't have to as long as there are a few who will work. And, that number is fewer and fewer.
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