Dnarever wrote on Jan 11^th, 2012 at 11:08am:


There's no lack of understanding this end.

Whenever socalled penalty rates were introduced is irrelevant. 

If a company needs staff working at night but can't get enough of them then they will pay more to attract night workers...this is legitimate business, supply and demand. 

Simply paying everyone more to work at night is uneconomical and illogical.  This is the point the Chef bloke is making.

GoddyofOz wrote on Jan 11^th, 2012 at 3:42am:


Penalty rates do contribute to unemployment.

Verge wrote on Jan 11^th, 2012 at 12:02pm:


Good luck with that attitude at an NYSE listed company Verge.

First week of Jan and most of us in Finance have worked 70+ hours in the week (including all of new year's day).

It comes down to work ethics and attitude and the view from our office is that the Australian work attitude stinks if we're honest.

Quote:


Let me know when a possie comes up Verge I might just get back in the trade.
A nice tree change to the country might be nice also

Verge wrote on Jan 11^th, 2012 at 3:00pm:



Money is nothing to do with it.

Pride in your work, ethics, morals, giving back to the company.
None of this is money related.

It's about attitude.
Chef, street cleaner, Financial Controller - they are all titles - all should have the same core ethics and values in my book.

WEEKENDS and holidays are for hitting the beach, family barbecues in the park, watching Disney movies at home in the afternoon, mowing the lawn, visiting grandma, going to Luna Park or playing cricket with a bunch of mates who look suspiciously like Max Walker.

It's different for all of us of course, but the grand Australian genius of weekends is that it's about taking a break from work and being able to do what you want. Our American friends make sweeping speeches about freedom -- we just get on with it.

So surely we can agree that if you work on the weekend you should be compensated for it - just as you should if you have to be at work in the evenings, or overnight or on a public holiday.    

The hospitality industry is one of Australia's great sectors of commerce. It's what helps make us a lifestyle superpower, and celebrity chef George Calombaris has been a big part of that. But this week George attacked penalty rates paid in restaurants, bars, cafes and all other parts of the hospitality industry. And - while I love his excellent cooking and his entrepreneurial business sense - we need innovative small businesses like his in Australia - I just can't agree that cutting wages of low-paid workers is a boost for the industry or a fair thing to do.

If George wants to bargain with his workers, improve productivity and be more competitive, then the tools exist in our present workplace system without the need to cut wages. Waiters are some of the lowest paid people in the country. The minimum wage is just $15.51 per hour and the average weekly pay for hospitality workers is $364 less than the overall average.

Penalty rates and wages were slashed under WorkChoices, which was roundly rejected by the Australian people. And let's be honest: Most waiters and other low-paid employees couldn't afford to eat in high-end restaurants if they weren't paid penalty rates.   

I greatly admire the US, but one thing we don't want to do is go down their wages path.

A minimum wage that is well below the poverty line and forcing hospitality staff to live on tips is not something this country should ever contemplate.

It's a similar situation for employees in the retail industry, where we sometimes see certain big retailers pointing the finger at penalty rates as the source of their economic woes, even though a typical retail worker's wage is also well below average.   

Yes, retail in Australia is doing it pretty tough right now and yes, it is immensely important to our economy. Yet the latest retail sales figures show consumers are cautious.

Australian households are saving more and borrowing less. In periods of some economic uncertainty it is normal for families to hold on to existing goods for longer than they otherwise might -- items like TVs, lounges, white goods, clothes and accessories.

So, with so many retailers, restaurants and cafes being small enterprise, we must always be in the business of helping them succeed and I hope 2012 proves to be a year of robust economic debate.

I also hope it's a time when Australians don't lose sight of how we are doing relatively well by global standards.

At times frustrated voices in our economy will point a premature finger of blame.

The critics shouldn't be ignored but we should always seek to discern the truth from the self-interest -- and also find the hope even where there is grumpy cynicism.

The thoughtful journalist Tom Dusevic wrote in a Sydney newspaper back in 1997 about how Saturday and Sunday traditionally had a different rhythm in Australia.

That the weekends have always been our own time, while the rest of the week was the boss's. He was in fact pondering at the time whether the weekend was at risk of being lost.

Fifteen years on I think we can confidently say it has not been lost. But that doesn't mean we should take it for granted. We are now a 24/7 economy but we should never abandon the weekend and our families.

And the sacred status of the weekend can be threatened sometimes. WorkChoices did this not long ago and we shouldn't forget it.   

No one likes having to pay a bit more for a meal at a restaurant. And we all want to see our main streets and shopping centres flourish.

But if part of what we pay on a Sunday is modestly compensating fellow Australians who are giving up their leisure time to serve us, then I think it's a small price to pay to protect the fair go for future generations of Australians.    

Bill Shorten is Workplace Relations Minister.   

How many people opening a restaurant do not understand the expectation of paying their employees at the correct rates and factor this into their business case?

Do people understand that for a start shift workers have a 5 to 8 year shorter life expectancy?

the inherent risk involved in shift work is very real.

Higher than average risk of heart problems, sleep issues, digestion problems, ulcers etc, mental health issues, and on. They also have a much greater risk of failed relationships and poorer quality family life in terms of availability for family events childrens sport and activities and such.