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even swiss rejects min wage!!!
- Thread starter sochi2014
- Start date
Only moronic 40% sinkies support the concept because they know perfectly well they're a bunch of useless twits.
Swiss rejects the high minimum wage,,not the minimum wage per say,,,,
Your title is wrong lah. There is a minimum wage in Switzerland. Why is the PAP so sloppy nowadays?
Why are you in a land that has 100 percent morons? NZ has minimum wage.
This is about 5 times of the Mcdonald worker pay in SG.
Without the courteous mats, you will not get mcvalue meals so cheaply. And yet they are cursed and insulted.
Fully agreed. Those free loaders expect to laze around, sing songs and wait for durians to drop.
Swiss to vote on $25 an hour minimum wage
[h=2]Swiss to vote on $25 an hour minimum wage[/h]
May 18th, 2014 |
Author: Online Press
(GENEVA, Switzerland, 16 May) – A vote on Sunday to
establish a minimum wage of $25 an hour would make mostly immigrants here in
agriculture, housekeeping, and catering among the world’s highest paid unskilled
workforce.
The vote comes after hundreds of fast-food workers walked off their jobs in
many U.S. cities and in more than 30 countries on Thursday in a protest for
higher wages. If the Swiss proposal passes, the country would have the highest
minimum wage in the world.
But some who would be eligible for the higher wage worry that it may do more
harm than good.
Luisa Almeida is an immigrant from Portugal who works in Switzerland as a
housekeeper and nanny. Almeida’s earnings of $3,250 a month are below the
proposed minimum wage but still much more than she’d make in Portugal.
Since she is not a Swiss citizen, she cannot vote but if she could, “I would
vote ‘no’,” she says.
“If my employer had to pay me more money, he wouldn’t be able to keep me on
and I’d lose the job.”
Almeida’s concern illustrates the dilemma that faces the movement to have
governments and not the market decide how much people should be paid at a
minimum.
Forcing employers to hike wages means they must cut expenses to accommodate
the higher labor costs. That often means less hiring, or some firing.
But Patrick Belser, Senior Economist in the Wage Group of the International
Labor Office in Geneva says the initiative could work.
“International experience has shown that minimum wages can prevent labor
exploitation without any negative effect on the economy,” he said.
Yet, Besler worries that a minimum wage of $4,500 a month “is probably a
little too high.
“If it is accepted, the effects on employment would have to be carefully
monitored, and a mechanism for social dialogue should be created to discuss its
effects and possible future adjustments of the rate,” he said.
Currently, Switzerland does not have a minimum wage law. Industry-specific
pay scales are determined by employment contracts or collective bargaining
agreements between employers and trade unions. However, 90% of Swiss workers
earn well above the proposed minimum and are already among the highest paid in
the world.
According to government statistics, the average household income in
Switzerland is about $6,800 a month; in the USA, where the minimum wage is
currently $7.25 an hour, the average household monthly income is roughly $4,300,
Census Bureau figures indicate.
Referendums are a unique feature of Switzerland’s unique brand of social
democracy, which gives citizens the power to shape policy over the government.
Any individual or group can challenge existing legislation or force a vote on a
new issue by collecting 100,000 signatures on a petition.
More in:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/05/16/swiss-minimum-wage/9166687/
[h=2]Swiss to vote on $25 an hour minimum wage[/h]
establish a minimum wage of $25 an hour would make mostly immigrants here in
agriculture, housekeeping, and catering among the world’s highest paid unskilled
workforce.
The vote comes after hundreds of fast-food workers walked off their jobs in
many U.S. cities and in more than 30 countries on Thursday in a protest for
higher wages. If the Swiss proposal passes, the country would have the highest
minimum wage in the world.
But some who would be eligible for the higher wage worry that it may do more
harm than good.
Luisa Almeida is an immigrant from Portugal who works in Switzerland as a
housekeeper and nanny. Almeida’s earnings of $3,250 a month are below the
proposed minimum wage but still much more than she’d make in Portugal.
Since she is not a Swiss citizen, she cannot vote but if she could, “I would
vote ‘no’,” she says.
“If my employer had to pay me more money, he wouldn’t be able to keep me on
and I’d lose the job.”
Almeida’s concern illustrates the dilemma that faces the movement to have
governments and not the market decide how much people should be paid at a
minimum.
Forcing employers to hike wages means they must cut expenses to accommodate
the higher labor costs. That often means less hiring, or some firing.
But Patrick Belser, Senior Economist in the Wage Group of the International
Labor Office in Geneva says the initiative could work.
“International experience has shown that minimum wages can prevent labor
exploitation without any negative effect on the economy,” he said.
Yet, Besler worries that a minimum wage of $4,500 a month “is probably a
little too high.
“If it is accepted, the effects on employment would have to be carefully
monitored, and a mechanism for social dialogue should be created to discuss its
effects and possible future adjustments of the rate,” he said.
Currently, Switzerland does not have a minimum wage law. Industry-specific
pay scales are determined by employment contracts or collective bargaining
agreements between employers and trade unions. However, 90% of Swiss workers
earn well above the proposed minimum and are already among the highest paid in
the world.
According to government statistics, the average household income in
Switzerland is about $6,800 a month; in the USA, where the minimum wage is
currently $7.25 an hour, the average household monthly income is roughly $4,300,
Census Bureau figures indicate.
Referendums are a unique feature of Switzerland’s unique brand of social
democracy, which gives citizens the power to shape policy over the government.
Any individual or group can challenge existing legislation or force a vote on a
new issue by collecting 100,000 signatures on a petition.
More in:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/05/16/swiss-minimum-wage/9166687/
Swiss rejects world highest minimum wage!
Cost of living in Switzerland is one of the highest in the world and the swiss rejected the highest minimum wage in a referendum! Seems like the swiss knows the downsides of having a high minimum wage that would actually increase the cost of living which is already very high and it might no even help the low wage workers at all esp for small businesses.
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-27459178
Cost of living in Switzerland is one of the highest in the world and the swiss rejected the highest minimum wage in a referendum! Seems like the swiss knows the downsides of having a high minimum wage that would actually increase the cost of living which is already very high and it might no even help the low wage workers at all esp for small businesses.
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-27459178
Re: Swiss rejects world highest minimum wage!
the swiss are more intelligient than sinkies
the swiss are more intelligient than sinkies
Re: Swiss rejects world highest minimum wage!
at least they have some humility and self control to reject worlds highest unlike a certain parliament of a first world country.
at least they have some humility and self control to reject worlds highest unlike a certain parliament of a first world country.
Re: Swiss rejects world highest minimum wage!
Is it due to the lack of sharpness ?
Is it due to the lack of sharpness ?
Swiss voters reject minimum wage of SGD$30/hr
Minimum wage is too high and it didn't take into account regional and sector differences that might merit different pay. In Singapore, our cleaners don't take home the same wage as our security guards. It doesn't make sense. They have different challenges at work and should be remunerated accordingly.
ZURICH—Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected an initiative that would have introduced the highest minimum wage in the world.
The Minimum Wage Initiative, which had been proposed by the Swiss Trades Union Confederation, was defeated by a 76%-24% vote, according to Swiss television.
The referendum, which would have established a minimum hourly wage of 22 Swiss francs ($25), marked a move by Swiss voters away from legislating compensation. Last year, voters backed a proposal giving shareholders of publicly traded companies more say on executive pay. A subsequent vote on capping the salaries of the best-paid executives at 12 times those of a company's lowest-paid employees was rejected.
Analysts said the rejection of the 1:12 Initiative for Fair Pay likely set the tone for the minimum-wage vote. "I am not surprised the initiative failed, given the rejection of the 1:12 motion," said Patrick Emmenegger, a political scientist at the University of St. Gallen.
The Minimum Wage Initiative came against a backdrop of efforts around the world to raise pay for lower-income workers. Switzerland's plan would have set wages at more than double the $10.10 an hour that U.S. President Barack Obama has proposed for American workers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is pushing for a minimum wage of €8.50 ($11.64) an hour.
The Swiss cabinet, known as the Federal Council, and both houses of Parliament urged voters to reject the measure, saying it didn't take into account regional and sector differences that might merit different pay. They also said the minimum wage would make it more difficult for low- and unskilled job seekers to find work.
Business lobby Swissmem said state control of pay would be a "flawed experiment" with the potential to undermine collective wage agreements in place in most industry sectors. Opponents also said Switzerland's employment system, which relies heavily on apprentice programs, would be undermined by the minimum wage. The youth unemployment rate in Switzerland is 3%, compared with 23.7% in the surrounding euro zone.
Supporters of the minimum wage expressed concern mainly about women working in the low-paid retailing and catering sectors and in unregulated industries, such as fitness clubs and call centers.
Daniel Lampart, the chief economist of the Trades Union Confederation, said the minimum-wage initiative had been an ambitious goal and succeeded in raising the issue of low pay in some Swiss business sectors.
Unions said the Swiss economy was strong enough to afford the increased wage, which translated to a monthly salary of about 4,000 Swiss francs. Roughly 90% of Switzerland's workforce of 4.2 million people earns more than 22 Swiss francs an hour, according to the unions.
Switzerland has never had a national minimum wage, though two cantons—Neuenburg and Jura—have approved staggered pay levels.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles...0001424052702304422704579569673058048190.html
Minimum wage is too high and it didn't take into account regional and sector differences that might merit different pay. In Singapore, our cleaners don't take home the same wage as our security guards. It doesn't make sense. They have different challenges at work and should be remunerated accordingly.
ZURICH—Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected an initiative that would have introduced the highest minimum wage in the world.
The Minimum Wage Initiative, which had been proposed by the Swiss Trades Union Confederation, was defeated by a 76%-24% vote, according to Swiss television.
The referendum, which would have established a minimum hourly wage of 22 Swiss francs ($25), marked a move by Swiss voters away from legislating compensation. Last year, voters backed a proposal giving shareholders of publicly traded companies more say on executive pay. A subsequent vote on capping the salaries of the best-paid executives at 12 times those of a company's lowest-paid employees was rejected.
Analysts said the rejection of the 1:12 Initiative for Fair Pay likely set the tone for the minimum-wage vote. "I am not surprised the initiative failed, given the rejection of the 1:12 motion," said Patrick Emmenegger, a political scientist at the University of St. Gallen.
The Minimum Wage Initiative came against a backdrop of efforts around the world to raise pay for lower-income workers. Switzerland's plan would have set wages at more than double the $10.10 an hour that U.S. President Barack Obama has proposed for American workers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is pushing for a minimum wage of €8.50 ($11.64) an hour.
The Swiss cabinet, known as the Federal Council, and both houses of Parliament urged voters to reject the measure, saying it didn't take into account regional and sector differences that might merit different pay. They also said the minimum wage would make it more difficult for low- and unskilled job seekers to find work.
Business lobby Swissmem said state control of pay would be a "flawed experiment" with the potential to undermine collective wage agreements in place in most industry sectors. Opponents also said Switzerland's employment system, which relies heavily on apprentice programs, would be undermined by the minimum wage. The youth unemployment rate in Switzerland is 3%, compared with 23.7% in the surrounding euro zone.
Supporters of the minimum wage expressed concern mainly about women working in the low-paid retailing and catering sectors and in unregulated industries, such as fitness clubs and call centers.
Daniel Lampart, the chief economist of the Trades Union Confederation, said the minimum-wage initiative had been an ambitious goal and succeeded in raising the issue of low pay in some Swiss business sectors.
Unions said the Swiss economy was strong enough to afford the increased wage, which translated to a monthly salary of about 4,000 Swiss francs. Roughly 90% of Switzerland's workforce of 4.2 million people earns more than 22 Swiss francs an hour, according to the unions.
Switzerland has never had a national minimum wage, though two cantons—Neuenburg and Jura—have approved staggered pay levels.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles...0001424052702304422704579569673058048190.html
Re: Swiss voters reject minimum wage of SGD$30/hr
NTUC FairPrice pay their daily rated workers 5 sing per hour to keep prices low.
NTUC FairPrice pay their daily rated workers 5 sing per hour to keep prices low.
This angmo country damn solid!!!
Every single thing also got national referendum!!
GENEVA
Worried about upsetting Switzerland's strong economy or driving its high costs even higher, more than three-quarters of Swiss voters rejected a plan Sunday to create the world's highest minimum wage and slightly more than half spurned a request to outfit the Swiss Air Force with 22 new fighter jets.
A tally by Swiss TV showed that with votes counted in all 26 of the Alpine nation's cantons (states), the Swiss trade union's idea of making the minimum wage 22 Swiss francs ($24.70) per hour fell flat by a vote of 76.3 percent opposed and 23.7 percent in favor.
The military's controversial request to spend 3.1 billion francs ($3.5 billion) for Saab's new Gripen fighter jets was narrowly defeated, with 53.4 percent against it and 46.6 percent who supported the purchase.
RECOMMENDED: How safe is flying? Take the aviation safety quiz
At a news conference in the Swiss capital Bern, members of the Federal Council of seven ministers, which includes the president, confirmed the vote results. They welcomed the decision on the minimum wage proposal. Trade unions had proposed it as a way of fighting poverty in a country that, by some measures, features the world's highest prices and most expensive cities.
But opinion polls had indicated that most voters sided with the council and business leaders, who argued it would cost jobs and erode economic competitiveness, driving Switzerland's high costs even higher.
"A fixed salary has never been a good way to fight the problem," Economy Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann said in Bern.
"If the initiative had been accepted, it would have led to workplace losses, especially in rural areas where less qualified people have a harder time finding jobs," he said. "The best remedy against poverty is work."
The proposal would have eclipsed the existing highest minimum wages in force elsewhere in Europe. Switzerland has no minimum wage, but the median hourly wage is about 33 francs ($37) an hour.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which adjusts figures for spending power, lists the highest current minimum wage as Luxembourg's at $10.66 an hour, followed by France at $10.60, Australia at $10.21, Belgium at $9.97, and the Netherlands at $9.48. The U.S. wage, an adjusted $7.11 down from the actual $7.25 rate, came 10th on the list.
Adjusted for its high prices, Switzerland's wage proposal would have represented about $14 an hour based on a 42-hour work week.
The nation's defense minister, Ueli Maurer, who had pushed hard for the Gripen purchased, acknowledged the vote exposed wide "differences" in levels of support around the country that would need to be addressed because of "the void that will be created in our country in terms of aviation security."
Voters also faced two other decisions at the polls Sunday, a result of Switzerland's unique system of popular rule that is expressed in endless citizen-inspired referendums, a weak federal government and strong cantonal governments.
An initiative to amend the nation's constitution by imposing a lifetime ban on convicted pedophiles working with children won support throughout the nation by a vote of 63.5 percent to 36.5 percent.
Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga said the vote sent a clear message of concern about protecting children against sexual abuse. But she cautioned that the new constitutional provision would require a ban to be "automatically applied without distinction" between predators and a young adult who sleeps with his girlfriend, if she is a minor.
RECOMMENDED: How safe is flying? Take the aviation safety quiz
"This fact poses a problem and the Federal Council will have to see how to apply this initiative," she said.
A medical reform measure to provide constitutional support for more family doctors in rural areas passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 88 percent to 12 percent.
Every single thing also got national referendum!!
GENEVA
Worried about upsetting Switzerland's strong economy or driving its high costs even higher, more than three-quarters of Swiss voters rejected a plan Sunday to create the world's highest minimum wage and slightly more than half spurned a request to outfit the Swiss Air Force with 22 new fighter jets.
A tally by Swiss TV showed that with votes counted in all 26 of the Alpine nation's cantons (states), the Swiss trade union's idea of making the minimum wage 22 Swiss francs ($24.70) per hour fell flat by a vote of 76.3 percent opposed and 23.7 percent in favor.
The military's controversial request to spend 3.1 billion francs ($3.5 billion) for Saab's new Gripen fighter jets was narrowly defeated, with 53.4 percent against it and 46.6 percent who supported the purchase.
RECOMMENDED: How safe is flying? Take the aviation safety quiz
At a news conference in the Swiss capital Bern, members of the Federal Council of seven ministers, which includes the president, confirmed the vote results. They welcomed the decision on the minimum wage proposal. Trade unions had proposed it as a way of fighting poverty in a country that, by some measures, features the world's highest prices and most expensive cities.
But opinion polls had indicated that most voters sided with the council and business leaders, who argued it would cost jobs and erode economic competitiveness, driving Switzerland's high costs even higher.
"A fixed salary has never been a good way to fight the problem," Economy Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann said in Bern.
"If the initiative had been accepted, it would have led to workplace losses, especially in rural areas where less qualified people have a harder time finding jobs," he said. "The best remedy against poverty is work."
The proposal would have eclipsed the existing highest minimum wages in force elsewhere in Europe. Switzerland has no minimum wage, but the median hourly wage is about 33 francs ($37) an hour.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which adjusts figures for spending power, lists the highest current minimum wage as Luxembourg's at $10.66 an hour, followed by France at $10.60, Australia at $10.21, Belgium at $9.97, and the Netherlands at $9.48. The U.S. wage, an adjusted $7.11 down from the actual $7.25 rate, came 10th on the list.
Adjusted for its high prices, Switzerland's wage proposal would have represented about $14 an hour based on a 42-hour work week.
The nation's defense minister, Ueli Maurer, who had pushed hard for the Gripen purchased, acknowledged the vote exposed wide "differences" in levels of support around the country that would need to be addressed because of "the void that will be created in our country in terms of aviation security."
Voters also faced two other decisions at the polls Sunday, a result of Switzerland's unique system of popular rule that is expressed in endless citizen-inspired referendums, a weak federal government and strong cantonal governments.
An initiative to amend the nation's constitution by imposing a lifetime ban on convicted pedophiles working with children won support throughout the nation by a vote of 63.5 percent to 36.5 percent.
Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga said the vote sent a clear message of concern about protecting children against sexual abuse. But she cautioned that the new constitutional provision would require a ban to be "automatically applied without distinction" between predators and a young adult who sleeps with his girlfriend, if she is a minor.
RECOMMENDED: How safe is flying? Take the aviation safety quiz
"This fact poses a problem and the Federal Council will have to see how to apply this initiative," she said.
A medical reform measure to provide constitutional support for more family doctors in rural areas passed overwhelmingly by a vote of 88 percent to 12 percent.
