Time to wage war on welfare and arguments for why minimum wage should be increased – The Irish Sun

ONE of the hardest things to do is to argue counter to something you believe or have argued against.

That is what critical thinking is about, holding uncomfortable thoughts and seeing them through.

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Last week, I looked at a study which showed how the minimum wage increases worked in the past.

So I thought I would counter with a few ideas on why far higher minimum wages could be beneficial and argue the opposite of what I said before.

Firstly, it would avoid welfare traps where a person receiving state supports gets trapped because by earning more they lose out on another benefit.

The area is complex, but at lower incomes the traps can be frequent and a higher minimum wage would help negate that.

Higher spending power in lower-income families would also be a good thing, it would ensure proper reward from work and increase wealth and the chance at home ownership.

If the minimum wage was 15 per hour, a working couple could in theory buy a house worth 240,000 - which, outside of cities, makes most of Ireland affordable under the regular lending rules.

With better incomes there would be less child poverty, lower rates of child and partner abuse and higher consumption as the effect of higher wages feeds through the economy.

There is a chance that some businesses would have to close because their main cost is labour - for instance, cleaning services.

But if the change was enacted across the country and all at once it could have a lower effect because all cleaners would have to use these prices (other than the black market which could in theory upend things).

There would be more taxes collected and lower spending on family supports because the market would provide this in greater numbers through higher wages.

Perhaps the best way to think of it is to consider minimum wages as the price for lacking more valuable skills.

The people who earn it typically swap their labour for the income, they dont have experience for high value added income.

That said, at 15 an hour they might be able to afford to work fewer hours and in that sense have better health outcomes as well as sufficient time to upskill even outside of working hours.

A higher minimum wage would lift a lot of people out of poverty.

Because many minimum wage workers are from middle and upper class households (most of the people on minimum wage are not the sole earner in a house and generally you dont have two people on minimum wage as a couple) you would see a good increase in taxes at levels beyond minimum wage earnings.

In America, the congressional budget office found that a $15 minimum wage could cost them well over 1,000,000 jobs but that it would raise the income of 27,000,000 workers and reduce poverty for over a million people.

So that tends to be the scary bit, it could do good but then lots of people would go from minimum wage to no-wage.

In a sense the message would change to minimum wage is so good you should go work for it, you want money? Get a job! - which is a far more positive prospect than trying to resolve poverty with welfare.

You could even end welfare for people capable of working by subsidising businesses to hire them for a higher minimum wage and in return have everybody contributing work to the country.

Workfare is a positive idea and at 15 an hour people would get behind it.

So, lots to consider. Any thought you have likely has a counterpoint if its something in the area of policy, so now try it yourself. Think the opposite way on something and see how you get on.

THERE was some interesting research in the UK this week published by Prudential showing seven per cent of people whose parents have a financial adviser also use them, citing feeling relaxed and relieved they can be trusted as a reason.

Despite keeping financial affairs in the family, almost half (49 per cent) admit they prefer to pay for advice separately.

What makes people look for advice? Usually, its life events, an unexpected windfall, inheritance and preparing for retirement are key prompters for seeking financial advice.

However, this differs among generations and this is something I see as an advisor.

If you stick around for long enough you do naturally get asked questions about your clients children who grow up.

Those children will usually look at how their parents did and where they got advice and consider talking to the same person or company.

Intergenerational advice is an important area for many parents because theyre often motivated by wanting to help their children while they are still alive and planning for that is important.

You can and should get financial advice regularly in the same way you get health advice the research shows people who do end up better off.

SINN FEIN SHOW IS STEALING A MARCH

LAST week I saw there was a Sinn Fein online event about housing and given my interest in the area I clicked the Facebook link and watched it.

While I often have huge reservations about Sinn Fein from a policy perspective, I cant fault their social media efforts at all.

It was a well run conference, Mary Lou was a good host, she interacted with people asking questions and afterwards the TDs made sure to reply to people who had left comments and they outlined their policies in a clear and easy way.

This is something that applies to many walks of life - politics, businesses or groups that are better at direct engagement with whoever they are hoping to influence will do better.

The cost of this kind of interaction is near zero (given TDs are already paid for their time anyway).

I can see why Sinn Fein are doing so well with younger voters, what I cant understand is why other political parties arent doing the same.

TUBMAN WAS AN ICON OF COURAGE

ARAMINTA Ross, also known as Harriet Tubman, was an amazing American woman, born into slavery in 1822.

She escaped slavery and went on 13 missions to free other slaves, liberating 70 more people using what was known as the underground railroad - which was a network of back roads and safe houses.

Her life as a slave wasnt easy, from a young age she was regularly beaten and she carried the scars for the rest of her life.

Her famous line was that she believed she had a right to liberty or death and if she couldnt have one shed have the other.

Tubman served as a scout for the Union Army during the civil war, during that time she guided the raid at the Combahee Ferry which freed 700 slaves, and later became an activist in womens suffrage.

She was down in the heart of the problem risking everything to elicit change.

Tubman remains an icon of courage and persistence in order to obtain freedom and her message is as important today as it was then.

THIS week we are going to look a little differently at something you probably do very regularly.

Its watching TV. Personally, I try to watch as little TV as possible, its how I get a lot done, but I do fall prey to some shows.

At the moment Im glued to one called Superstore, a great comedy series.

The money tip is this, do you have a cable subscription but tend to like TV series?

Then consider cancelling expensive satellite or cable and just use Netflix which starts at 7.99 a month.

Cable or satellite subscriptions tend to start at about 25 a month and the 17 difference is reflected in what you get.

But equally, if you dont use the suite of whats on offer then whats the point?

It wont suit everybody but you can get news online and smart TVs have apps for all manner of shows.

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Question

I HEARD you talking about artificial intelligence recently on the radio and how we really should start to think about the ethics of it - surely machines dont have ethics, do they?

Answer

Not for now they dont, but in the not-to-distant future, what would happen if a machine became so capable that it could start to think for itself?

Would that constitute consciousness? Would turning it off or shutting it down be cruel?

The advancements in technology are happening so rapidly that these kinds of ethical questions are likely far closer than we think they are!

Question

IS now a good time to invest in the stock market? You said a few weeks ago that we might be in a dangerous place I certainly dont want to lose all my money.

Answer

I have some good news for you about investing right now, you arent going to lose all of your money because you arent going to invest it all in the markets!

They also never go to zero (as an index although individual stocks can).

Ray Dalio is a legendary investor and he has some indicators that suggest we might be in a bubble - so just be sure to exercise caution if you do choose to invest.

Question

I HEARD you saying you dont think people should ever be able to vote until they are 18. I know more about politics than my parents do because I care about it - so why shouldnt I vote at age 16?

Answer

That you ask is the answer. Obviously you may be very political, and perhaps politicised too, but you dont represent regular 16 year olds.

Nor are you likely to have kids or many other things that adulthood brings - like tax bills (which pay for the system).

So be a kid, enjoy it, youll be an adult long enough and vote then all you want.

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Time to wage war on welfare and arguments for why minimum wage should be increased - The Irish Sun