Peter Martin, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University
The official figures show things are fine, but Australia’s most comprehensive tracking survey finds the typical household is worse off than ten years ago.
In July 2018, public servants went on strike to demand fair wages.
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Last year, more than 70,000 workers walked off their jobs in New Zealand – the highest number of people on strike since the late 1980s. The reasons for the strike wave are political and economic.
As income inequality is growing in many countries, associated social problems are also getting worse.
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Research suggests union membership by default could help reduce income inequality and its associated social ills.
Unions, which traditionally protected wages at the bottom end, are starting to tap into community anger at the wealth flowing to the top end of town.
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This is the first article in a series, Reclaiming the Fair Go, to mark the awarding of the 2018 Sydney Peace Prize to Nobel laureate and economist Joseph Stiglitz.
Wolves on Wall Street, but perhaps the time of shareholders’ rule is drawing to an end.
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Over two centuries, capitalist ethos has swung from profit-taking for the few, to a distribution of wealth to the many, and back again. Is the pendulum poised to swing once more?
Households feeling the pinch from frozen wages feeds into slower economic growth, and policymakers need to find a solution.
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Governments can’t undo the technological changes behind frozen wages and rising inequality. The best policy is to invest in education and training to give workers skills of value in the new economy.
Aggregate demand is being hit by the concentration of income growth among the top earners and is now a drag on economic growth.
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News that Australian CEO pay has soared to a 17-year high at a time when ordinary workers’ wages are flatlining is ultimately bad news for economic growth and prosperity.
Basic income: a step forward for women?
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Despite a range of laws and policy measures, many gender inequities seem firmly entrenched. One innovative policy measure that could make a difference is basic income.
A Turkana woman buys food from a refugee woman in Kakuma camp in north western Kenya.
Refugee Studies Centre