ANC considering minimum wage for SA

As they say, you cannot create wealth by dividing it.

The ANC should put more effort into the creation of 'new' wealth which can then be distributed. Merely distributing current wealth is not wealth creation but essentially just bringing everybody down to the same level.
 
ToxicBunny said:
I agree completely that it will be too high..

I'm just interested to see how dense these idiots actually can be.
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My maids minimum salary is not too high. In fact.... its too low. I pay double minimum wage and I still feel I under pay her. So historically, they dont have a record of setting minimum wages too high.
 
ghoti said:
My maids minimum salary is not too high. In fact.... its too low. I pay double minimum wage and I still feel I under pay her. So historically, they dont have a record of setting minimum wages too high.
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That is your own personal opinion on the matter...(and i'm not saying that its wrong)

Just from a purely economic point of view, pushing a minimum wage that is much higher than the current values will not be a driver of economic growth, it will slow it down, if not reverse it.
 
I have and I still hold that a minimum wage is not a straight line when it comes to economic consequences. It's a curve - with both ends tapering. High wages incentivizes progress, but discourages employment. Low wages encourage employment, but decentivizes progress. Both extremes hold big economic consequences.

In the 60's the USA had a 100% GDP per capita minimum wage rate and they did bloody good. I don't expect that to work today because social dynamics have changed a lot; instead of 1 person in a household of 5+ working full time, we now have two people working full time in a household of three. However I think the target that Europe as a whole has set - which is around the 50% is a good current day target that is both affordable and achievable.
 
ToxicBunny said:
That is your own personal opinion on the matter...(and i'm not saying that its wrong)

Just from a purely economic point of view, pushing a minimum wage that is much higher than the current values will not be a driver of economic growth, it will slow it down, if not reverse it.
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If minimum wages are not regularly raised to keep up with inflation then technically poor people would get pay cuts every time the cost of living goes up.
 
ghoti said:
If minimum wages are not regularly raised to keep up with inflation then technically poor people would get pay cuts every time the cost of living goes up.
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Without a doubt...

And I'm not against the minimum wage concept in the slightest...

But given whats going on in the mining sector, and has been going on in a few other sectors, its not impossible to see the ANC bowing to pressure to set high minimum wages rather than realistic ones.
 
ToxicBunny said:
But given whats going on in the mining sector, and has been going on in a few other sectors, its not impossible to see the ANC bowing to pressure to set high minimum wages rather than realistic ones.
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We'll have to wait and see. I wouldn't be expecting anything close to mining sector minimum wages.
 
A good question would be, what do you guys think minimum wage should be?

If a maids current minimum wage is R75 a day, I dont think that should be anything less than R100 a day.

What do you think? (Take into account food costs for the day, taxi transport costs, etc)
 
More money in the hands of employers will boost consumer spending and ultimately the economy. Though as always a balance should be sought.
 
ghoti said:
A good question would be, what do you guys think minimum wage should be?

If a maids current minimum wage is R75 a day, I dont think that should be anything less than R100 a day.

What do you think? (Take into account food costs for the day, taxi transport costs, etc)
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I would be saying in the region of R100 per day... maybe up to R150, but then there are no real perks at that money.. no free food etc etc...
 
ToxicBunny said:
I would be saying in the region of R100 per day... maybe up to R150, but then there are no real perks at that money.. no free food etc etc...
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If they dont live and eat at your place then its peanuts for a minimum wage IMO. Consider travel costs to get to your house alone everyday...
 
ToxicBunny said:
I would be saying in the region of R100 per day... maybe up to R150, but then there are no real perks at that money.. no free food etc etc...
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As long as they have the option to opt out, I don't see how it can't be a deductible benefit.
 
sox63 said:
If they dont live and eat at your place then its peanuts for a minimum wage IMO. Consider travel costs to get to your house alone everyday...
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For my maid specifically..

The travel costs are R10 each way. I pay her R150 per day, and she gets free food and such whilst working for me.

Its not exactly skilled labour, so the pay will never be high.
 
If there are 250 workdays in a year and 8 work hours in a workday then there are 2000 work hours in a year. If we make the assumption that the GDP per Capita in South Africa is $8000 (A bit higher than 2012 estimates) and that the exchange rate is R10 to the dollar (A bit lower than current) the GDP per capita in South African currency terms is R80000 or R40 an hour. If we look at 30% as it is in the US and 50% as it is in the EU, you'll come out at between R12 - R20 an hour, between R96 - R160 a day or between R2016 - R3360 a month. That range should be our target range.

Personally I'd push for R150 a day, but would accept R120.
 
Our nanny/domestic gets R140 a day on top of that lunch and supper to take home, she starts at 8am and leaves at 5pm.

She has a certificate in child care, we sent her on a 3day course.
I pay for her 2x kids school fees and wife pays for books, stationary and shoes every year.
Luckily she only lives 5km away but the wife when she gets home drops her off near her house every day.
Her husband also has a job but 30km away.
 
Garson007 said:
Getting food and having it subtracted from their salary.
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Who said it would be subtracted from their salary?

I was speaking about my maid (and most maids for that matter I would guess).. they get paid a value, and get fed whilst at work.. if they push the minimum wage too high, than that "free food" option will disappear.
 
ToxicBunny said:
Who said it would be subtracted from their salary?

I was speaking about my maid (and most maids for that matter I would guess).. they get paid a value, and get fed whilst at work.. if they push the minimum wage too high, than that "free food" option will disappear.
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Yes, but you should be able to subtract money from the minimum wage if the maid agrees to a deductible benefit (the food).
 
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