OZ Reserve Bank Head - Aussies afraid of Foreigners and Robots

[Ruprecht]

Shorten work weeks, end the wage system, go to worker co-ops, shut down immigration until wages recover, pass laws that protect 1st world labor markets from 3rd world labor markets. I mean the options are literally endless. Let's move to self issued credit.

Shutting down immigration won't improve wages. We've already had ever tightening migration restrictions since 2010. The only benefit has been the decreased pressure on housing and infrastructure. Maybe you're thinking of illegal or unskilled (or competing rather than complementary skilled) immigration? That's practically nonexistent here.
I don't see how shortening work weeks, ending the wage system or self-issued credit is going to solve the inherent situation of global economic competition and comparative advantage.
What laws would you use to protect first world labour from the third world aside from tariffs or other subsidies? Paying more for things to subsidise certain industries isn't a long term solution to developing and maintaining globally competitive industries. Unless you're protecting a developing industry until it's globally competitive (the South Korean model), you just impoverish consumers to benefit the chosen industries.

 

[VivaRevolution]

Shutting down immigration won't improve wages. We've already had ever tightening migration restrictions since 2010. The only benefit has been the decreased pressure on housing and infrastructure. Maybe you're thinking of illegal or unskilled (or competing rather than complementary skilled) immigration? That's practically nonexistent here.
I don't see how shortening work weeks, ending the wage system or self-issued credit is going to solve the inherent situation of global economic competition and comparative advantage.
What laws would you use to protect first world labour from the third world aside from tariffs or other subsidies? Paying more for things to subsidise certain industries isn't a long term solution to developing and maintaining globally competitive industries. Unless you're protecting a developing industry until it's globally competitive (the South Korean model), you just impoverish consumers to benefit the chosen industries.

Why would I need a globally competitive industry, when in my lifetime, I will see a post resource scarcity world?

Lowering housing costs through less demand, is effectively a raise.

Shortening the work week creates more demand for labor, as it did when the 40 work week was passed into law.

Honestly, I could go point by point, but the fact that you couldn't find merit in even one of the ideas I put forward, says a lot about how open you are to competing ideas to your own.

 

[Ruprecht]

Why would I need a globally competitive industry, when in my lifetime, I will see a post resource scarcity world?

Lowering housing costs through less demand, is effectively a raise.

Shortening the work week creates more demand for labor, as it did when the 40 work week was passed into law.

Honestly, I could go point by point, but the fact that you couldn't find merit in even one of the ideas I put forward, says a lot about how open you are to competing ideas to your own.

Post scarcity? As in a post scarcity communist techtopia? Sounds like a pipe dream. Without globally competitive industry you're automatically at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to sharing in any technological progress or the creation and distribution of wealth.
None of your ideas address the technologically driven fact of global competition. With shorter working weeks and increased trade barriers, you're saying the answer to that competition is to be even less competitive.
Worker co-ops could potentially lead to a broader distribution of wealth, but they don't address global competition at all. Never mind the inherent difficulties of successfully establishing them in a world where labour unions are failing.
I've no idea how Self Issued Debt is even supposed to relate to this context and "ending the wage system" is equally meaningless without detailing the alternative.

 

[VivaRevolution]

Post scarcity? As in a post scarcity communist techtopia? Sounds like a pipe dream. Without globally competitive industry you're automatically at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to sharing in any technological progress or the creation and distribution of wealth.
None of your ideas address the technologically driven fact of global competition. With shorter working weeks and increased trade barriers, you're saying the answer to that competition is to be even less competitive.
Worker co-ops could potentially lead to a broader distribution of wealth, but they don't address global competition at all. Never mind the inherent difficulties of successfully establishing them in a world where labour unions are failing.
I've no idea how Self Issued Debt is even supposed to relate to this context and "ending the wage system" is equally meaningless with detailing the alternative.

Why will we have resource scarcity when automation, 3-D printing, and AI come on line?

 

[Ruprecht]

Why will we have resource scarcity when automation, 3-D printing, and AI come on line?

Because even with currently unforseeable progress in those technologies, there'd still be scarcity of real estate, raw materials, energy and processing power.

 

[VivaRevolution]

Because even with currently unforseeable progress in those technologies, there'd still be scarcity of real estate, raw materials, energy and processing power.

Real estate I'll give you.

Why can't machines mine natural resources?

We have nuclear power now. If hydrogen, fussion, solar, wind doesn't work out, it is time to bite the bullet on nuclear.

 

[MMA IAN]

I don't know about some going to flat rate, honestly more accurate to say some still have penalties.

As for offshore the nepotism within the Maori's is legendary in construction with offshore you've got Buckley's being Aussie and getting a green start(same for experienced really). The amount of offshore guys I've worked with in the last 5 years that were pushed out once the new kiwi supervision came on board is pretty wild and you don't choose 4:1 over 4:4 unless you have no choice.

Lol ahh Sink iron, I hear you. That'll be the next James Hardy asbestos in 40 years.
The stories I can tell from there, have you been back post construction? Saw a Chinese supervisor remove mandatory individual lock-ons for the shut down because it was taking up too much time. He locked on for 50-60 workers and no-one has any idea who was where, one day 3 guys were almost left behind due to the complete CF. Honestly the money leaving the country on that one was nothing like Barrow or Wheatstone though, at its peak I think you'd be lucky to have had 40% Aussie workers. This while everyone knew 10 guys back in Perth who would have killed to get the FIFO.

Pm me if your old man's chasing good workers(yeah I'm not shy of putting it in) Confidentiality guaranteed and you'd get a training partner onsite

Cool to talk to someone been to the same places

Green starts? Don't remind me, finding my first rigging job wasn't easy.

Nah I haven't, but that doesn't surprise me in the slightest. We had a chinese bloke run a forklift down a hill into a ute, turned out he didnt have his ticket but he decided to move it because it was in the way. I dug up some pics of the crushers we were installing

All the yellow railings had to be replaced because they didnt meet standard, had to weld supports under the grilles on the platforms, there were areas where 4 grilles met with no support so you could bounce on it, if a big guy stepped on it heavily you could potentially put your foot through and get it stuck, most of the welding around the outside was cracked or very uneven, had to grind it back and reweld it, etc etc and this was the same on all 4 crushers.



This was only my 2nd rigging job and we were doin some big lifts, I was sweatin balls half the time aye.

Got to like the idea of being a crane operator though, the bloke in this one is fast asleep in the air con with a porn magazine on his chest. Nearly lost all my front teeth puttin together this crane as well, had this bloke who was a complete peanut and he unhooked the chain while it was at an angle and the block swung right towards my face, If I hadn't reacted quick as fuck I woulda copped it in the mouth

Yeah man no worries I'm not in the industry anymore but I'll send you a PM

 

[mon]

Green starts? Don't remind me, finding my first rigging job wasn't easy.

Nah I haven't, but that doesn't surprise me in the slightest. We had a chinese bloke run a forklift down a hill into a ute, turned out he didnt have his ticket but he decided to move it because it was in the way. I dug up some pics of the crushers we were installing

All the yellow railings had to be replaced because they didnt meet standard, had to weld supports under the grilles on the platforms, there were areas where 4 grilles met with no support so you could bounce on it, if a big guy stepped on it heavily you could potentially put your foot through and get it stuck, most of the welding around the outside was cracked or very uneven, had to grind it back and reweld it, etc etc and this was the same on all 4 crushers.



This was only my 2nd rigging job and we were doin some big lifts, I was sweatin balls half the time aye.

Got to like the idea of being a crane operator though, the bloke in this one is fast asleep in the air con with a porn magazine on his chest. Nearly lost all my front teeth puttin together this crane as well, had this bloke who was a complete peanut and he unhooked the chain while it was at an angle and the block swung right towards my face, If I hadn't reacted quick as fuck I woulda copped it in the mouth

Yeah man no worries I'm not in the industry anymore but I'll send you a PM

Awesome same field as well. Not real bright but can lift heavy things.

Lol it's a case of the inmates running the asylum. They had a open bin full of Asbestos material 20 meters from the control room/sign on room, breeze blowing it everywhere. Had a tape barricade and a couple of Asbestos signs, safe as houses mate.

Line 2? Shutdown and while the whole area is an Asbestos nightmare (talc like) and was a p3 face mask area. To get the work done quicker they reclassified the area safe. 30 meters away there's piles of talc like Asbestos powder and it's blowing in the wind. Chinese don't care, you aren't allowed to raise legitimate issues as its against their culture and they lose "face" lol and people complain when you have the audacity to generalise.

I hear you about rework, it was obvious that whoever did the QA was on the take. The big players come in cheap knowing there's a packet to be made in the cheap Chinese garbage they call steel.

You should have seen the rework at Roy hill, modulised the whole lot but not the pipework like at Barrow. Stacking it all up to look good and than losing 3 times the time having to manually put in all the pipework etc. Lol more delays the more pays I guess but it sucks as the workers productivity is always to blame in the media but in reality it's upper management poor decisions and lack of understanding which cost the time.

Lol it's not until the pressures on that you realise its not all wandering around the crane refusing to do TA work. Truth is a ton or 100 ton the principal is the same.... Pressures on when you know it could cost a life or 20million though. Get a good crane operator and once centered you show barely be needed.

Give me a roughy or franna anyday, you're busy as hell and the workhorse of the site.
Job satisfaction rigging the go bit operating pays better esp when you get up there tonnage wise.

Yes everyone has close calls and any more than 2 riggers is an argument. It's another reason I like dogging frannas compared to big cranes, it's all me. No opinions, no having to watch your back for poor rigging.... If there's a fuckup it's you, you don't have to wear someone elses and keep you mouth shut.
On the flip side I prefer operating slew as you're really just a vegetable with arms in a franna, until it gets how ya going anyway.

Thanks for the pm, I'll check it out later tonight. Appreciate it.

I'll try and find some of the photos I have of Crane stupidity at Roy hill. Got some crackers that were going around at the time