Biggest ever recorded jump in weekly earnings as median NZ wages rise

[Oldfellah]

A key measure of Kiwi wages and salaries has shot up by its largest margin since records started 24 years ago.
Stats NZ data released today showed median weekly earnings from wages and salaries rose 8.8 per cent in the year to June 30.
According to the income survey, median earnings were now $1189.

https://tinyurl.com/2kgv3q68

All good but how about putting up the pension then especially in these times, sure we get The Winter Energy Payment but is it really enough? I dont think so, the amount of money the government has been splashing about lately throwing some our way would be nice.

[Praktica]

My super went up from $672.22 to $712.22 at the start of April. Didn't you get that?

[SueDonim]

A key measure of Kiwi wages and salaries has shot up by its largest margin since records started 24 years ago.
Stats NZ data released today showed median weekly earnings from wages and salaries rose 8.8 per cent in the year to June 30.
According to the income survey, median earnings were now $1189.

https://tinyurl.com/2kgv3q68

All good but how about putting up the pension then especially in these times, sure we get The Winter Energy Payment but is it really enough? I dont think so, the amount of money the government has been splashing about lately throwing some our way would be nice.

Super is linked to the average wage so you will get a rise - not sure how soon though. The last one was April this year. Is it adjusted once a year?

[Oldfellah]

My super went up from $672.22 to $712.22 at the start of April. Didn't you get that?

Yes I received the updated pay rise last April, I was just being sarcastic and hoping it would happen again now everyone else is getting a better paypacket (sigh)

[Lilith7]

My super went up from $672.22 to $712.22 at the start of April. Didn't you get that?

Yes I received the updated pay rise last April, I was just being sarcastic and hoping it would happen again now everyone else is getting a better paypacket (sigh)

Well it was worth a try, eh.

[Oh_hunnihunni]

Excellent. Now Super will get a rise next year to match...

[Lilith7]

I think what's needed is a fairer world, a better way of doing things.
Came across this earlier.


https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/16-08-2...vmb4vYtV6Y

[Zurdo]

No, they won't share. The rich think they got where they are by just shear hard work, and everyone else has the same equal opportunity. Just get off your arse and work for it ! They think reality is their reality.

[Lilith7]

No, they won't share.  The rich think they got where  they are by just shear hard work, and everyone else has the same equal opportunity. Just get off your arse and work for it !  They think reality is their reality.

There was a survey done somewhere - possibly the USA I think, - which showed that those who are wealthy often believe that its due to their own efforts when in reality they've often been helped along the way by their family's money. One thing's for sure; if we don't fairly soon move to narrow that yawning gap between rich & poor, we will have trouble.

[SueDonim]

No, they won't share.  The rich think they got where  they are by just shear hard work, and everyone else has the same equal opportunity. Just get off your arse and work for it !  They think reality is their reality.

There was a survey done somewhere - possibly the USA I think, - which showed that those who are wealthy often believe that its due to their own efforts when in reality they've often been helped along the way by their family's money. One thing's for sure; if we don't fairly soon move to narrow that yawning gap between rich & poor, we will have trouble.

I couldn't find the survey but to say that some people have been helped by parents is reasonable. If parents are in a position to help why wouldn't/shouldn't they? Like this guy https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/aucklander...G5ONB24BM/ who has apparently already paid them back and rewarded their input with a great deal of success, which he is clearly also paying forward. Just because some people get help doesn't mean all do, and the tone of comments like "think they got where  they are by just shear hard work" is part of the problem we have. Young people who don't see a need to work to achieve something in life because they see the tall poppies around them getting torn down.

And yes, "everyone else [does have] the same equal opportunity". Plenty of people come from nothing and achieve a lot. Why should they be criticised for that? They should be held up as role models to help push others out of the benefit go-round.

I don't see any definition of "rich" being put forward here, but do see people that seem to think that anyone who has done better than they is somehow greedy and shouldn't have what they have achieved. As with any generalisation there are of course some who deserve criticism, but by far the majority don't.

[Lilith7]

There was a survey done somewhere - possibly the USA I think, - which showed that those who are wealthy often believe that its due to their own efforts when in reality they've often been helped along the way by their family's money. One thing's for sure; if we don't fairly soon move to narrow that yawning gap between rich & poor, we will have trouble.

I couldn't find the survey but to say that some people have been helped by parents is reasonable. If parents are in a position to help why wouldn't/shouldn't they? Like this guy https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/aucklander...G5ONB24BM/ who has apparently already paid them back and rewarded their input with a great deal of success, which he is clearly also paying forward. Just because some people get help doesn't mean all do, and the tone of comments like "think they got where  they are by just shear hard work" is part of the problem we have. Young people who don't see a need to work to achieve something in life because they see the tall poppies around them getting torn down.

And yes, "everyone else [does have] the same equal opportunity". Plenty of people come from nothing and achieve a lot. Why should they be criticised for that? They should be held up as role models to help push others out of the benefit go-round.

I don't see any definition of "rich" being put forward here, but do see people that seem to think that anyone who has done better than they is somehow greedy and shouldn't have what they have achieved. As with any generalisation there are of course some who deserve criticism, but by far the majority don't.

There are very few people who don't see a need to work.
Really, I don't think anyone needs 51 properties.


I'm referring to those who, having made some money conveniently 'forget' having been helped by family & claim that 'anyone can become rich if they work hard.'
People don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck, & not 'anyone can do it.'




http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/08/the-age-of-entitlement-how-wealth-breeds-narcissism

"Call it the asshole effect. That is the term coined by US psychologist Paul Piff after he did some stunning new research into the effects of wealth and inequality on peopleÔÇÖs attitudes.
As we ponder Joe HockeyÔÇÖs budget and his division of the world into "leaners" and "lifters", as we learn from Oxfam that the richest 1% of Australians now own the same wealth as the bottom 60%, we would do well to consider the implications of PiffÔÇÖs studies. He found that as people grow wealthier, they are more likely to feel entitled, to become meaner and be more likely to exploit others, even to cheat.

Piff conducted a series of revealing experiments. One was remarkably simple. Researchers positioned themselves at crossroads. They watched out for aggressive, selfish behaviour among drivers, and recorded the make and model of the car. Piff found drivers of expensive, high-status vehicles behave worse than those sputtering along in battered Toyota Corollas.
[i]They were four times more likely to cut off drivers with lower status vehicles. As a pedestrian looking carefully left and right before using a crossing, you should pay attention to the kind of car bearing down on you."





[/i]

https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html<!-- @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } -->


[/url]


"Psychologist and social scientist Dacher Keltner says the rich really are different, and not in a good way: Their life experience makes them less empathetic, less altruistic, and generally more selfish.


[url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]

[font=Times New Roman, serif][size=small][color=#0000ff][url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]In fact, he says, the philosophical battle over economics, taxes, debt ceilings and defaults that are now roiling the stock market is partly rooted in an upper class "ideology of self-interest."


ÔÇ£We have now done 12 separate studies measuring empathy in every way imaginable, social behavior in every way, and some work on compassion and itÔÇÖs the same story,ÔÇØ he said. ÔÇ£Lower class people just show more empathy, more prosocial behavior, more compassion, no matter how you look at it.ÔÇØ


In other words, rich people are more likely to think about themselves. ÔÇ£They think that economic success and political outcomes, and personal outcomes, have to do with individual behavior, a good work ethic,ÔÇØ said Keltner, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Because the rich gloss over the ways family connections, money and education helped, they come to denigrate the role of government and vigorously oppose taxes to fund it."

[SueDonim]

I couldn't find the survey but to say that some people have been helped by parents is reasonable. If parents are in a position to help why wouldn't/shouldn't they? Like this guy https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/aucklander...G5ONB24BM/ who has apparently already paid them back and rewarded their input with a great deal of success, which he is clearly also paying forward. Just because some people get help doesn't mean all do, and the tone of comments like "think they got where  they are by just shear hard work" is part of the problem we have. Young people who don't see a need to work to achieve something in life because they see the tall poppies around them getting torn down.

And yes, "everyone else [does have] the same equal opportunity". Plenty of people come from nothing and achieve a lot. Why should they be criticised for that? They should be held up as role models to help push others out of the benefit go-round.

I don't see any definition of "rich" being put forward here, but do see people that seem to think that anyone who has done better than they is somehow greedy and shouldn't have what they have achieved. As with any generalisation there are of course some who deserve criticism, but by far the majority don't.

There are very few people who don't see a need to work.
Really, I don't think anyone needs 51 properties.


I'm referring to those who, having made some money conveniently 'forget' having been helped by family & claim that 'anyone can become rich if they work hard.'
People don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck, & not 'anyone can do it.'




http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/08/the-age-of-entitlement-how-wealth-breeds-narcissism

"Call it the asshole effect. That is the term coined by US psychologist Paul Piff after he did some stunning new research into the effects of wealth and inequality on peopleÔÇÖs attitudes.
As we ponder Joe HockeyÔÇÖs budget and his division of the world into "leaners" and "lifters", as we learn from Oxfam that the richest 1% of Australians now own the same wealth as the bottom 60%, we would do well to consider the implications of PiffÔÇÖs studies. He found that as people grow wealthier, they are more likely to feel entitled, to become meaner and be more likely to exploit others, even to cheat.

Piff conducted a series of revealing experiments. One was remarkably simple. Researchers positioned themselves at crossroads. They watched out for aggressive, selfish behaviour among drivers, and recorded the make and model of the car. Piff found drivers of expensive, high-status vehicles behave worse than those sputtering along in battered Toyota Corollas.
[i]They were four times more likely to cut off drivers with lower status vehicles. As a pedestrian looking carefully left and right before using a crossing, you should pay attention to the kind of car bearing down on you."





[/i]

https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html<!-- @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } -->


[/url]


"Psychologist and social scientist Dacher Keltner says the rich really are different, and not in a good way: Their life experience makes them less empathetic, less altruistic, and generally more selfish.


[url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]

[font=Times New Roman, serif][size=small][color=#0000ff][url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]In fact, he says, the philosophical battle over economics, taxes, debt ceilings and defaults that are now roiling the stock market is partly rooted in an upper class "ideology of self-interest."


ÔÇ£We have now done 12 separate studies measuring empathy in every way imaginable, social behavior in every way, and some work on compassion and itÔÇÖs the same story,ÔÇØ he said. ÔÇ£Lower class people just show more empathy, more prosocial behavior, more compassion, no matter how you look at it.ÔÇØ


In other words, rich people are more likely to think about themselves. ÔÇ£They think that economic success and political outcomes, and personal outcomes, have to do with individual behavior, a good work ethic,ÔÇØ said Keltner, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Because the rich gloss over the ways family connections, money and education helped, they come to denigrate the role of government and vigorously oppose taxes to fund it."

Some good points there and some continuation of stereotypes.

You are right that "people don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck" but the biggest hurdle is that those who do have those opportunities don't take them. and that can be simply because they don't want to which is fine. But they shouldn't later be jealous of those who did.

On one level no one "needs" 51 properties, but a businessman at that level can do so much more, which he, at such a young age, seems to be starting out on. I recently read Branson's biography. You could argue that he didn't need any of what he attained, but the world sure needed all the social good that he was able to do.

I disagree with your quote about the cars. That is using the car as a status symbol, not showing actual wealth. Some of the wealthier people I know are driving the equivalent of the old Toyotas. It's the wannabees who buy the latest and greatest (or lease them) and try to look "the part". That lesson was pointed out to me in the late 70s when I was spending time at the farm down the road and my father said "do you realise that [the farmer] is a multi millionaire?" He drove a car cheaper than ours, and we were poor!

Also, the comment about family connections, money and education will undoubtedly be true for some, but what of those who had none of those and still ended up in the top brackets. Although I still don't see an actual definition of "rich".

[Zurdo]

Well, the same opportunities is debatable, but people certainly have different aims and desires in life. Some are just obsessed about making money...either by just hard work or wheeling and dealing. Some want position, want to climb the ladder to success. Some want to help others, some to help their families. For us, when we had kids we wanted them to have parents in their life, so I limited myself to working a 40hr week, no more, and my wife stayed at home - we brought up 4 kids on a low single income. It hasn't made me rich, or given us perfect children...but it was my choice not to work hard and become rich. Doesn't make me a lazy no hoper....

[Lilith7]

There are very few people who don't see a need to work.
Really, I don't think anyone needs 51 properties.


I'm referring to those who, having made some money conveniently 'forget' having been helped by family & claim that 'anyone can become rich if they work hard.'
People don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck, & not 'anyone can do it.'




http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/08/the-age-of-entitlement-how-wealth-breeds-narcissism

"Call it the asshole effect. That is the term coined by US psychologist Paul Piff after he did some stunning new research into the effects of wealth and inequality on peopleÔÇÖs attitudes.
As we ponder Joe HockeyÔÇÖs budget and his division of the world into "leaners" and "lifters", as we learn from Oxfam that the richest 1% of Australians now own the same wealth as the bottom 60%, we would do well to consider the implications of PiffÔÇÖs studies. He found that as people grow wealthier, they are more likely to feel entitled, to become meaner and be more likely to exploit others, even to cheat.

Piff conducted a series of revealing experiments. One was remarkably simple. Researchers positioned themselves at crossroads. They watched out for aggressive, selfish behaviour among drivers, and recorded the make and model of the car. Piff found drivers of expensive, high-status vehicles behave worse than those sputtering along in battered Toyota Corollas.
[i]They were four times more likely to cut off drivers with lower status vehicles. As a pedestrian looking carefully left and right before using a crossing, you should pay attention to the kind of car bearing down on you."





[/i]

https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html<!-- @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } -->


[/url]


"Psychologist and social scientist Dacher Keltner says the rich really are different, and not in a good way: Their life experience makes them less empathetic, less altruistic, and generally more selfish.


[url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]

[url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/the-rich-are-different-and-not-in-a-good-way-studies-suggest.html]In fact, he says, the philosophical battle over economics, taxes, debt ceilings and defaults that are now roiling the stock market is partly rooted in an upper class "ideology of self-interest."


ÔÇ£We have now done 12 separate studies measuring empathy in every way imaginable, social behavior in every way, and some work on compassion and itÔÇÖs the same story,ÔÇØ he said. ÔÇ£Lower class people just show more empathy, more prosocial behavior, more compassion, no matter how you look at it.ÔÇØ


In other words, rich people are more likely to think about themselves. ÔÇ£They think that economic success and political outcomes, and personal outcomes, have to do with individual behavior, a good work ethic,ÔÇØ said Keltner, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.
Because the rich gloss over the ways family connections, money and education helped, they come to denigrate the role of government and vigorously oppose taxes to fund it."

Some good points there and some continuation of stereotypes.

You are right that "people don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck" but the biggest hurdle is that those who do have those opportunities don't take them. and that can be simply because they don't want to which is fine. But they shouldn't later be jealous of those who did.

On one level no one "needs" 51 properties, but a businessman at that level can do so much more, which he, at such a young age, seems to be starting out on. I recently read Branson's biography. You could argue that he didn't need any of what he attained, but the world sure needed all the social good that he was able to do.

I disagree with your quote about the cars. That is using the car as a status symbol, not showing actual wealth. Some of the wealthier people I know are driving the equivalent of the old Toyotas. It's the wannabees who buy the latest and greatest (or lease them) and try to look "the part". That lesson was pointed out to me in the late 70s when I was spending time at the farm down the road and my father said "do you realise that [the farmer] is a multi millionaire?" He drove a car cheaper than ours, and we were poor!

Also, the comment about family connections, money and education will undoubtedly be true for some, but what of those who had none of those and still ended up in the top brackets. Although I still don't see an actual definition of "rich".

Not sure why you think anyone is 'jealous' of those who are wealthy. I think probably the unfairness of our society is what rankles.

The cars were used as an example.
However, not every wealthy person is inclined to get the trappings of wealth.
This chap is a good example.
https://en.as.com/en/2019/10/17/soccer/1...22970.html

Sadio Mane
"Why would I want ten Ferraris, 20 diamond watches, or two planes? What will these objects do for me and for the world? I was hungry, and I had to work in the field; I survived hard times, played football barefooted, I did not have an education and many other things, but today with what I earn thanks to football, I can help my people,"┬áMan├®┬áexplained. "I built schools, a stadium, we provide clothes, shoes, food for people who are in extreme poverty. In addition, I give 70 euros per month to all people in a very poor region of Senegal which contributes to their family economy. I do not need to display luxury cars, luxury homes, trips and even planes. I prefer that my people receive a little of what life has given me".

Back home in┬áSenegal,┬áMan├®┬áhas funded the construction of a school in┬áBambali, work on the new school began before the summer."

[SueDonim]

Well, the same opportunities is debatable, but people certainly have different aims and desires in life. Some are just obsessed about making money...either by just hard work or wheeling and dealing. Some want position, want to climb the ladder to success. Some want to help others, some to help their families. For us, when we had kids we wanted them to have parents in their life, so I limited myself to working a 40hr week, no more, and my wife stayed at home - we brought up 4 kids on a low single income. It hasn't made me rich, or given us perfect children...but it was my choice not to work hard and become rich. Doesn't make me a lazy no hoper....

Good on you! A lifetime of 40 hours a week is hard work and you deserve your reward for that.

---

Some good points there and some continuation of stereotypes.

You are right that "people don't always have the same opportunities, abilities & luck" but the biggest hurdle is that those who do have those opportunities don't take them. and that can be simply because they don't want to which is fine. But they shouldn't later be jealous of those who did.

On one level no one "needs" 51 properties, but a businessman at that level can do so much more, which he, at such a young age, seems to be starting out on. I recently read Branson's biography. You could argue that he didn't need any of what he attained, but the world sure needed all the social good that he was able to do.

I disagree with your quote about the cars. That is using the car as a status symbol, not showing actual wealth. Some of the wealthier people I know are driving the equivalent of the old Toyotas. It's the wannabees who buy the latest and greatest (or lease them) and try to look "the part". That lesson was pointed out to me in the late 70s when I was spending time at the farm down the road and my father said "do you realise that [the farmer] is a multi millionaire?" He drove a car cheaper than ours, and we were poor!

Also, the comment about family connections, money and education will undoubtedly be true for some, but what of those who had none of those and still ended up in the top brackets. Although I still don't see an actual definition of "rich".

Not sure why you think anyone is 'jealous' of those who are wealthy. I think probably the unfairness of our society is what rankles.

The cars were used as an example.
However, not every wealthy person is inclined to get the trappings of wealth.
This chap is a good example.
https://en.as.com/en/2019/10/17/soccer/1...22970.html

Sadio Mane
"Why would I want ten Ferraris, 20 diamond watches, or two planes? What will these objects do for me and for the world? I was hungry, and I had to work in the field; I survived hard times, played football barefooted, I did not have an education and many other things, but today with what I earn thanks to football, I can help my people,"┬áMan├®┬áexplained. "I built schools, a stadium, we provide clothes, shoes, food for people who are in extreme poverty. In addition, I give 70 euros per month to all people in a very poor region of Senegal which contributes to their family economy. I do not need to display luxury cars, luxury homes, trips and even planes. I prefer that my people receive a little of what life has given me".

Back home in┬áSenegal,┬áMan├®┬áhas funded the construction of a school in┬áBambali, work on the new school began before the summer."

Fully agree. that's what I was saying, that the stereotype of evil rich being presented in some posts here is totally inaccurate. Just because a few are selfish/greedy doesn't mean that all or even most are.