Business – Page 51 – Michmutters

Category: Business

Categories
Business

In New Zealand wages are growing. Will Australian workers’ pay packets get a bump?

In New Zealand wages are growing. Will Australian workers' pay packets get a bump?

The cost of living is soaring. Rocketing food prices and rising interest rates mean that without a substantial rise in wages, workers find themselves going backwards.

So are wage rises coming?

Ahead of official data out next week there are conflicting signals about what’s going on with wages.

going up

The good news, if you’re a worker, is that it’s a great time to be you.

Job vacancies are at a record high and there’s a massive shortage of labor (partly because so many migrants have gone home since the pandemic began and haven’t returned).

For advanced manufacturing company ANCA, that means paying people more.

Johanna Boland 1
Advanced manufacturing firm ANCA has been lifting wages to reward staff and lure new talent as they expand, says Johanna Boland the company’s strategy and communications manager.(ABC News: Simon Tucci)

“If we don’t have the right people, then we’re not going to be able to succeed in the marketplace. So we’ve got to pay what the market’s asking,” says the company’s strategy and community manager Johanna Boland.

“I think it’s not just inflation, it’s also been a really hot market for talent.”

ANCA is competing with tech companies, banks and start-ups for software engineers and designers with in-demand skills. It employs 1,300 people globally, most in Bayswater in Melbourne’s outer suburbs.

The staff work in a variety of divisions, making things like complex robotic tools and components. Its machines are used by other companies in high-precision work, for example in cutting components used in mobile phones and medical equipment.

Early this year some staff started asking for more money to deal with rising living costs. The company did a “wide-scale analysis” looking at its entire staff and lifted wages for all.

The budget for wages has already changed since May and at the review in October it will be more again.

ANCA staff will get more money. Will you?

Kiwi wages lift

Australia’s unemployment rate is at its lowest level since 1974, at just 3.5 per cent. In New Zealand it’s down to 3.3 per cent – ​​and it was even lower in the previous quarter.

(Even though it’s a blunt measure, with someone working an hour a fortnight considered “employed”, it is the measure generally used globally.)

That should mean higher demand for workers, leading to a boost in wages. In Australia that hasn’t happened yet, but New Zealand figures out this week show big lifts in how many workers are taking home in pay.

We have similar economies – and in New Zealand average hourly earnings are up to 7 per cent, year on year, for workers in the private sector, those not employed by governments. That’s almost catching up to the consumer price index (inflation) growing at 7.4 per cent.

Auckland city at sunrise
Auckland is beautiful. And wages there are rising.(Reuters: Stefan Wermuth)

Also, 26 per cent of jobs surveyed received a pay rise of more than 5 per cent, the highest proportion since 2008. And about two-thirds of jobs received an increase in ordinary-time wage rates in the past year –the highest level on record.

breaking history

Australians aren’t getting that kind of a boost. They’re going backwards.

The Reserve Bank of Australia see wages rising about 3.5 per cent next year, but that’s a significant pay cut in real terms. That’s because inflation is expected to peak at 7.75 per cent by the end of this year, be about 6.2 per cent by the middle of 2023 and 4.3 per cent by the end of next year.

So prices will keep rising faster than pay packets, meaning a cut in ‘real wages’ for millions of people.

There’s a simple answer on wages, according to Joseph Stiglitz, recipient of the Nobel Prize for Economics:

“They need to be higher.”

Joseph Stiglitz
Former World Bank chief economist Joseph Stiglitz wants to see people get higher wages.(International Monetary Fund/flickr.com/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

“The only thing Australians might feel good about is that they’re better than what’s happening in the United States, where things are devastating,” he said during a visit to talk to parliamentarians, trade unionists and business leaders.

Asset prices like houses and stocks have soared during the pandemic. A decade of low wage growth means people who get their income from wages are falling behind.

“The price of inequality is that low-paid workers are less productive. If we as a society reduce inequality, we’ll have a better performing economy. Better paid workers are less anxious… more satisfied, less likely to quit.”

Cost pressure

For many businesses, it’s not easy to raise wages.

Peter Burn, director of public policy at the Australian Industry Group (Ai Group), notes salaries are a big cost. But they’re just one, and many of the other major elements that go into running a business have already asked for more.

“Cost pressures are widespread,” he said.

Peter Burn
Dr Peter Burn of the Ai Group doesn’t see broad, large wage rises coming.(ABC News—Dan Irvine)

“There’s cost pressures coming from energy costs — electricity and gas, petrol — freight has been a major cost increase for a lot of businesses. The prices of building materials have risen very sharply, digital equipment [too]. They’re the big ones we’ve been hearing about.”

Dr Burn says these costs are particularly strong, but they also flip what’s become normal.

“We’ve become used to low or even falling prices in recent years. So this is a sudden reversal of what we’ve become used to,” he said.

He sees “big gaps” in the wages picture. There are aggregates (for everyone) of around 2.5 per cent growth, but certain industries and roles are seeing sharp wage rises.

“But what we’re hearing from particular businesses is they’re increasing the wages, they’ve got to pay (bigger) salaries attract particular staff,” he says, pointing to tech and project management as key fields enjoying substantial leaps in salary .

That’s putting wage pressure on businesses those business, he adds.

“But as a general rule across the economy, wage pressures are not high.”

Job seeking

Australia’s largest job site is a gold mine of information about what’s happening with wages. Or it could be.

“So most employers don’t put the salary on the job ad,” advises Kendra Banks, managing director of Seek. “This is something we do advise employers to think about more carefully. If the salary is good, if they think it’s above average, it will certainly attract more applicants.”

Why don’t they – especially in a tight labor market where people are looking to make more money to meet the cost of living? Because they cause chaos in their workplaces.

“It’s quite often in some organizations that newcomers will have different salary levels than the existing employees. So advertising that through the ad could create challenges internally for some companies or organisations,” she says.

Kendra Banks
Kendra Banks says some advertised jobs have large salary increases. (ABC News: Simon Tucci)

This is like the so-called ‘loyalty premium’ paid by consumers. Long-term bank customers with a home loan, for example, are sometimes shocked to learn that people walking into the branch and taking out a mortgage are offered a better rate.

In jobs, too, there’s a benefit to switching.

“We see that through some of the ABS data that looks at wage changes for people who’ve moved employers and those who haven’t,” Ms Banks says.

“And the wage change for those who’ve moved employers is significantly higher than those who haven’t.”

With other costs rocketing, employers may be offering inducements that aren’t money.

“Participation in the labor market in Australia is already very, very high, so it may be that wage growth is not exactly what it takes (to lure workers),” she adds.

Perks like flexible working, the ability to work from home, to set your own hours and leave stronger entitlements may be areas “employers are leaning on more in order to attract the best candidates.”

Cost pressure

Switching employers might bring more money, but for many workers it’s not possible or desirable. They have to either push their boss for a bigger pay packet, or wait for external pressure to do it.

And that might not eat.

“For 10 years, we’ve been told that some Magic Wage Growth Fairy will come along and one day boost wages,” says an exasperated Richard Denniss, chief economist of the Australian Institute.

“The reason we have low wage growth is because employers are not offering decent wage rises.

“The only way that wages can grow in Australia is if employers pay their workers higher wages. And every employer, including the public sector is saying, ‘Oh, we can’t afford to offer high wage growth’.

“So unless lots of employers are offering wages that start with a 5 (per cent), then we’re not going to see average wage growth start with a 3.”

A man in a blue shirt stands in front of an apartment building.
Richard Denniss, chief economist and former executive director of the Australia Institute.(ABC News: Ian Cutmore)

Data out on August 17 from the Australian Bureau of Statistics will let us know what’s happened to wages in the recent past. What happens in the future is up to workers, unions, bosses, governments and companies.

“The way a market is supposed to work is when something is scarce, the price goes up,” Dr Denniss says.

“That’s what’s happened with gas. But when it happens with labour, apparently there’s a problem.”

.

Categories
Business

Sydney Pork Rolls charging customers 20 cents to cut roll in half

Sydney Pork Rolls charging customers 20 cents to cut roll in half

The rising cost of living has reached new heights at a Sydney pork roll store, after a customer spotted an unusual surcharge on the sandwich bar’s menu.

A photo posted to Reddit shows Vietnamese restaurant Sydney Pork Rolls’ extensive list of surcharges for extra fillings and a bag.

A roll from the store ranges from $5.50 and $8.50 in price with additional meat, ham or an egg to set the customer back an extra $1.50 while a second bag costs 10 cents.

But at the bottom of the list is an odd surcharge for a standard request, with the Haymarket shop charging customers an extra 20 cents if they request to have their roll “half cut”.

It’s a menu item that has baffled pork roll fans as some question why there’s an extra cost for a “two-second” service.

“Which way to cut in half?” one Reddit user commented. “Longways? Sideways? Across ways? So many questions here.”

“50 cents to ask why it costs 20 cents to cut,” posted another.

Meanwhile others thought of ways to get around the additional expense.

“Ask for it to be cut into thirds, must be free as it’s not on the price list,” one comment read.

Another said they might consider halving it themselves with their own butter knife.

The uncanny surcharge also had commenters crunching the numbers to see how much extra money the business could make in an hour.

“With a two-second cut … that equals $360p/hr. I’m getting into the sandwich biz,” one comment read.

“They should ask ‘would you like to cut it in half?’ like a fast food worker upselling (by) asking if ‘you want fries with that’,” said another.

Others have justified the additional cost explaining it could be due to the restaurant using more packaging to divide the roll.

“Getting it cut in half means the two halves are wrapped and packaged separately. It’s completely reasonable to charge extra,” a Reddit user posted, defending the expense.

Sydney Pork Rolls in Haymarket has been contacted for comment.

The roll half-cut surcharge joins a list of several other odd additional costs Sydneysiders have spotted around the state recently.

A Sydney airport cafe was reportedly charging $1.50 extra if a customer wanted more tomato in a toastie while others have noticed the price of babychino’s increase from $1 to $2.50 in other cafes across the state.

Some hospitality services and small businesses are also charging their customers extra by a small percentage if they pay for their items by tapping their debit or credit card opposed to inserting or swiping.

“Local cafe great before lockdown (sic) in Western Sydney, now surcharges if you pay with debit card,” one Sydneysider tweeted.

Venues can also charge a public holiday surcharge or weekend fee where prices are increased by a percentage on those days.

According to Australia’s consumer watchdog, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), businesses can charge surcharges at their own discretion so long as the terms surrounding the surcharge are explicitly stated and don’t come as a surprise to the customer.

“The menu (or price list) must include the words ‘a surcharge of [percentage] applies on [the specified day or days]’ and these words must be displayed at least as prominently as the most prominent price on the menu (or price list),” the ACCC said.

There is no limit as to how much extra a business can charge in additional costs.

Read related topics:sydney

.

Categories
Business

Soaring number of older home owners take out government-backed reverse mortgages

Soaring number of older home owners take out government-backed reverse mortgages

“These changes provide more options and greater flexibility for users of the scheme and are expected to increase the number of older Australians choosing to participate.”

Reverse mortgages let older home owners borrow money secured against their property. If they don’t make payments, the debt compounds and is paid when the property is sold or the borrowers die. Commercial loans taken out since 2012 have a no negative equity guarantee, meaning borrowers cannot owe more than the value of their stake in their home, and this safeguard was also added to the government scheme this month.

Prior to 2019, participants in the government scheme could draw a fortnightly income up to the full pension rate, including any existing pension payments, making it effectively only available to part pensioners and some self-funded retirees. From July 2019, borrowers were able to borrow to fund a fortnightly income of up to 150 per cent of the full pension rate.

Meanwhile, figures from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority show the continuing decline of the commercial market. The value of outstanding reverse mortgage loans held by banks, building societies and credit unions fell to $2.21 billion by the end of March 2022, an 18 per cent fall from $2.7 billion from the same period in 2019.

In 2019 the Commonwealth Bank and its subsidiary Bankwest were the last of the big banks to exit the reverse mortgage market for new loans, but the products are still offered by a handful of smaller lenders charging 6 to 7 per cent interest a year.

Comparison site Canstar says lenders offering reverse mortgage loans include Household Capital, Heartland, IMB, P&N Bank, G&C Mutual Bank and Gateway Bank.

Steve Mickenbecker, a finance expert at comparison site Canstar, said commercial reverse mortgages had not lived up to expectations.

“Reverse mortgages were developed with great hope that they would provide the financial solution for asset-rich, cash-poor retirees to fund the retirement lifestyle they aspired to,” he said.

But Mickenbecker said early offerings in the reverse mortgage market delivered adverse outcomes to customers and while this was largely fixed by regulation, it still came with “significant trade-offs and some risk to the borrower”.

He said many providers withdrew from the reverse mortgage market during the global financial crisis because they were expensive to run, with an uncertain time frame. The market had not recovered, and it was unlikely to do so given rising interest rates would make the debt compound faster and may cause the value of the property to fail.

Deb Shroot, a financial counselor with the National Debt Helpline, said she sometimes recommended the Centrelink scheme to clients, adding it worked similarly to hardship programs run by councils to allow older people to defer their rates.

“If these forms of loans or hardship [schemes] are enabling people to stay in their homes longer, if that’s what they want to do, then they can be a really good option for people so long as they’re going through adequate checks to make sure that they’re suitable and then not charging an unaffordable interest,” Shroot said.

Shroot said the main reasons why older people rang the National Debt Helpline included credit card debts where they had only ever paid the minimum balance, utilities and energy bills and the rising cost of living generally, and unaffordable rates and strata debt.

loading

Categories
Business

Rent in Australia: How ‘zombie houses’ are contributing to the country’s rental crisis

Rent in Australia: How 'zombie houses' are contributing to the country's rental crisis

There are thousands of “zombie” houses in Australia – and they could hold the key to the country’s rental crisis.

There could even be one in your neighbourhood.

Put simply, “zombie” houses are properties that are sitting empty or are not being used 100 per cent of the time.

Watch the latest News on Channel 7 or stream for free on 7plus >>

“No one is renting them … no one’s living in them,” Finder money expert Rebecca Pike told 7NEWS.com.au.

And they are widespread – last year’s census revealed there were more than 1 million unoccupied dwellings, although that was during a time when much of the country was in lockdown and borders had been closed for more than a year.

But with Australia’s rents soaring and tenants struggling to find a roof over their heads, these ominously termed properties could be pushing prices up – and taking away rental properties from desperate families.

Governments around the country are working to clamp down on zombie homes and make them available for renters, but experts say more can be done.

What is a ‘zombie’ house?

It might be a terrifying term, but the idea of ​​“zombie” houses came about in a much more benign way than their name suggests.

They can include short-term rentals and holiday homes – investors may choose to rent their property out short-term to make more money and have some flexibility.

“It seems safer to have Airbnb tenants just for a few days at a time, a week, couple of weeks – there’s less wear and tear to worry about,” Pike said.

And there’s more money to be made.

“The other side is you can just charge more money for an Airbnb. So, what you might get in a week’s rent, you can get in a weekend.”

But while there are benefits for investors, turning properties into short-term rentals means there are fewer homes up for rent, Pike said.

And that’s a problem at a time when residents have been priced out of the rental market as demand grows and rents increase – forcing some to live in their cars or stay in a caravan while they find a rental.

“Investors are putting their properties out for Airbnb, but it’s taking rental properties away from renters and that lack of … properties available to rent is driving demand and prices up,” she said.

Why landlords don’t want to change tack

Melbourne property investment adviser Goro Gupta understands the challenges of the rental crisis.

He has an Airbnb on the Gold Coast that doubles as a holiday home, and is in the process of turning a second property he owns into an Airbnb.

Gupta said he purchased the Gold Coast property – a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house – because it would have less of an impact on the rental market.

“Not all people need a four bed, two bath home for just one family,” he said.

“That’s why we purchased an Airbnb which wouldn’t really be affecting the market which is in crisis.”

He and his family fly up to the Gold Coast and use the property about every two months. Every other weekend, it’s booked out by travellers, Gupta said.

“It’s not like it’s sitting empty, it’s just empty on some of the weekdays,” he said.

“Typically, two families that want to have a family reunion or get together… at least have a house because it’s a nice four-bedroom house with a private pool.

“It’s cheaper for them to use our house than a hotel.

“With the second property, there was a long-term renter in there, but he wanted to go off and buy his own property.”

Using the property as an Airbnb generates about 10 per cent to 20 per cent more income than having a long-term rental.

“(And) it gives us the ability to use the house as a holiday house whenever we need to,” he said.

Brisbane resident Raine Gaisford knows there are struggles in the rental market, but needs her investment property listed on Airbnb.

She and her husband bought an investment property in Noosa last October, planning to use it as a holiday home that they would eventually move into – but that became too expensive with their mortgage.

Instead, they listed the property on Airbnb. It is now booked out about 50 per cent to 60 per cent of the time.

“It’s not a matter of us trying to make profit. It’s actually just about trying to pay the mortgage,” Gaisford said.

“We wouldn’t be able to service the mortgage if we didn’t have it as a short-term rental.

“We’d be making quite a significant loss … if we were to rent it out as a longer-term rental.”

The couple uses the property when they can, but need it to be rented out “for a good portion of the year in order to service (the loan)“.

What needs to be done?

While short-term rentals do contribute to the rental crisis, investors and Airbnb owners are not to blame, First National Real Estate CEO Ray Ellis said.

“You can’t blame the consumer or the property owner because they see it as an investment return,” Ellis told Money News.

“If we’ve got a good property in a regional town or close to the beach or even in inner Sydney, that’s getting $800 a week – if you can get that $1000 for the weekend, without … having long-term commitment with tenants, it’s an easy financial decision to make.”

Instead, the onus should be on state governments, Ellis said.

Across the country, local councils and state governments have introduced rules and restrictions on short-term rentals.

In Brisbane city council, owners who list residential properties on short stay websites will be hit with a 50 per cent surcharge on their current rate bill.

“Brisbane has plenty of great hotels with many more under construction, and our suburban streets were never meant to be home to mini hotels that house different tenants every week,” Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said in June.

File image of residential houses in Sydney. Credit: Getty Images

“It is my hope that instead of paying extra, many owners will return these houses and apartments to the long-term rental market, which will help ease our housing shortage.”

Across the border in NSW, owners who rent out their properties for short-term stays must register the accommodation with the state government and comply with a code of conduct.

In Greater Sydney and several regional areas, non-hosted short-term rentals – where the owner does not reside at the property – are limited to renting their property out for 180 days a year.

Still, more needs to be done to help ease the rental crisis.

“Australia hasn’t built enough houses,” Ellis said.

“As a government – state or federal – in the post-war period, the late ’50s, early ’60s, we built almost 240,000 of what we called social housing properties in those days.

“They were full and since then, no state government has made the same commitment to it.

“State governments must address it.”

Finder money expert Pike said the rental crisis is expected to get worse over the coming months and agrees it needs urgent action.

“We’re definitely seeing that demand for rental housing going up because we have so many more people coming into the country, whereas during COVID we really saw that drop,” Pike said.

“There is definitely more demand at the moment, but there’s also less supply.

“Also with the RBA cash rate, if investors are paying more for their loans, they’re potentially passing that on to renters.

Shocking moment Pitbull attacks prized horse.

Shocking moment Pitbull attacks prized horse.

.

Categories
Business

Melbourne restaurants serves up bargain burgers, deals on duck and other dining specials every day of the week

On Wednesdays at Superchido, people are ordering these $10 plates of tacos and $10 desserts.

If you’re not in Europe escaping the chill, you could instead bask in the glow of a good bargain when dining out. Melbourne restaurants and pubs are tackling the notoriously quiet winter months with all kinds of specials on food and drinks.

Monday might be pasta night, Tuesday brings deals on schnitzels and the bargains continue right through until Sunday, if you know where to look.

On Wednesdays at Superchido, people are ordering these $10 plates of tacos and $10 desserts.

On Wednesdays at Superchido, people are ordering these $10 plates of tacos and $10 desserts. Photo: Jason South



Seddon restaurant Superchido serves a Mexican menu that’s broader in reach than many others around town. But on Wednesdays, people eat for tacos. Two tortillas loaded with pork, beer-battered barramundi or grilled veg are available for $10; desserts are the same price.

While it was initially a night targeted to locals, the restaurant now gets people traveling from all over Melbourne for the deal.

“It’s equivalent to the foot traffic we get on a Friday,” says chief marketing officer Beatrice Pineda.

Welcome to Brunswick does half-price barbecue on Saturday afternoons, with smoked meats, vegan options and plenty of sides.

Welcome to Brunswick does half-price barbecue on Saturday afternoons, with smoked meats, vegan options and plenty of sides. Photo: Chip Mooney



Pineda says that business is steady throughout the week, but the Wednesday special provides a mid-week boost. “That alleviates the pressure on Friday and Saturday night trades.”

While Wednesday diners will mostly stick to the discounted items on the menu, they will often spend more on drinks.

Superchido, like other venues, has been offering these deals since the start of the year and say they haven’t noticed any change in their popularity in recent months, despite four consecutive interest rate rises and surging costs of essentials like fuel.

Specials like these could be helping to fuel continued growth in transactions on dining out and takeaway, which grew by 8.6 per cent in the June quarter according to latest ABS data.

Ripponlea Food and Wine has noticed that Friday and Saturday trade continues to be strong, with people ordering lots of cocktails. But on Wednesday and Thursday, diner spend per head is half what it is on weekends.

A long-running pasta and wine night for $40 each Wednesday helps keep tables full.

CBD restaurant Robata does a special deal on chicken katsu sandwich and a beer at lunchtime.

CBD restaurant Robata does a special deal on chicken katsu sandwich and a beer at lunchtime. Photo: Jake Roden



“Mid-week, you need to tap into value for money. Diners are not necessarily looking to spend $100 a head,” says director Lisa Slaughter.

Dining deals often become more common in winter, as venues compete against the pull of staying indoors.

Throughout August, restaurant booking platform The Fork has set up deals where venues offer set menus at $99, $79 or $49. In Victoria, 49 restaurants are participating, including big names like Turkish restaurant Tulum and Federation Square’s Taxi Kitchen.

People travel from all over Melbourne to get a cheap taco deal on Wednesdays, according to Superchido.

People travel from all over Melbourne to get a cheap taco deal on Wednesdays, according to Superchido. Photo: Jason South



“It’s a good way for venues to acquire new customers,” says head of marketing James Walmsley. “We know it’s expensive for venues to do their own marketing… but the most expensive thing for a restaurant is an empty table.”

As interest rate decisions catch up with consumers, some say they’re starting to pull back their discretionary spending, or plan to in future. A third of those surveyed in July by restaurant booking platform SevenRooms said dining out would be the first budget item they’d cut.

That could mean more bargains are on the table for savvy diners in coming months, even as warmer weather arrives.

Epocha's Sunday roast is more than that, with three courses for $65.

Epocha’s Sunday roast is more than that, with three courses for $65. Photo: Jacqueline Moussa



Where to find dining deals every day of the week in Melbourne

MONDAY

Cheap drinks and snacks or $40 dinner, Henry Sugar

Monday night is legendary here for the inventive snacks (starting at $7), $10 negronis and $50 carafes of wine that can get your week off to a naughty start. Otherwise, do the two-course dinner for $40. 296-298 Rathdowne Street, Carlton North, henrysugar.com.au

the "beggars banquet" at Bar Margaux is a more affordable way to kickstart (or end) your night.

The “beggars banquet” at Bar Margaux is a more affordable way to kickstart (or end) your night. Photo: Gareth Sobey



TUESDAY

$80 beggars banquet, Bar Margaux

That’s what they call this spread of oysters, steak tartare, fries and two glasses of Taittinger champagne. Head to this basement bar early (5pm-7pm) or late (10am-midnight), Wednesday to Saturday, to slump it in style. Basement, 111 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, barmargaux.com.au

Turkish restaurant Tulum in Balaclava is participating in a month of dining specials by The Fork to boost business in winter.

Turkish restaurant Tulum in Balaclava is participating in a month of dining specials by The Fork to boost business in winter. Photo: Jake Roden



WEDNESDAY

$10 tacos and desserts, Superchido

Get two tacos for $10, with three different fillings on offer: al pastor (pork), fish (battered fish) or rajas (scorched pepper). Back it up with a $10 dessert: churros or chocolate cake with layers of sponge and custard. There’s also a happy hour before the food specials kick off. 82 Charles Street, Seddon, superchido.com.au

Kids' pastas are free at Brunetti Classico in Carlton Monday to Thursday.

Kids’ pastas are free at Brunetti Classico in Carlton Monday to Thursday. Photo: Supplied



THURSDAY

$12 burgers at Burger Shurger

Normally costing between $19 and $13.50, the fillings on these loaded burgers are Indian in flavour: think butter chicken, fried chilli paneer and potato tikka. It’s a fun mash-up that gets even better with a discount (also available on Wednesdays). Locations in Elsternwick and Williamstown, burgershurger.com.au

Burger Shurger's hefty fillings include butter chicken, aloo tikka and more, with most burgers $12 mid-week.

Burger Shurger’s hefty fillings include butter chicken, aloo tikka and more, with most burgers $12 mid-week. Photo: Supplied



FRIDAY

Two-for-one drinks at Ripponlea Food and Wine

Relocate the home office to this bayside spot to make the most of its 3pm-5pm happy hour. Pay half for a couple of Asahis or Matilda Bay Original Ales or try a tap wine, including King Valley pinot grigio. 15 Glen Eira Road, Ripponlea, ripponleafoodandwine.com.au

SATURDAY

Half-price barbecue at Welcome To Brunswick

What’s normally a $19 plate of smoked meat (or veg, if that’s your preference) is all yours for less than a tenner on Saturday afternoons (noon-4pm). Choose your hero, add sides like mac and cheese and bring it home with fluffy bread, pickles or some croquettes. 1 Frith Street, Brunswick, welcometobrunswick.com.au

SUNDAY

$65 for three courses at Epocha

They call it a Sunday roast, but lunch here on Sunday is so much more. Kick off with shared entrees, perhaps whipped ricotta with bread, before moving on to swordfish with mandarin and sorrel. Then it’s the roast of the week with sides to match and duck-fat potatoes. Dessert is also included, so you’ll be rolling all the way home. 49 Rathdowne Street, Carlton, epocha.com.au

THROUGHOUT THE WEEK

$20 specials at Paradise Valley Hotel

There are four ways to get dinner for $20, starting with steak on Monday. Fans of burgers, parmas and curry are also catered for throughout the week, then on Sunday there’s a roast special at market price. 249 Belgrave-Gembrook Road, Clematis, paradisevalleyhotel.com

Kids eat free at Brunetti Classico

From Monday to Thursday, margherita pizza, gnocchi and more kids’ pizza and pasta are free, as long as one adult orders a main meal. Does getting dinner on the house mean the kids will want even more gelato after? You bet. 380 Lygon Street, Carlton, brunetticlassico.com.au

$25 katsu sando and beer at Robata

Squishy white bread, crisp panko-crumbed chicken and lashings of Kewpie: this is how you do a sanga. With edamame for snacking and a refreshing Asahi, this is a lunchtime special that could have you skipping dinner. Talk about budget friendly. 2 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, robata.com.au

$60 prix-fixe lunch and wine at Philippe

Those in the know sniff out the lunch deal at this French CBD favourite. From Tuesday to Friday, two courses – onion soup and confit duck, perhaps – plus a carafe of wine, are all yours for nearly half the normal bill. Basement, 115-117 Collins Street, Melbourne, philipperestaurant.com.au

Kids eat free at The Orrong Hotel

Make dinnertime easy (and cheap!) at this renovated south-side pub, where kids aged 12 years and under eat on the house. Options include chicken schnitzel, spaghetti with napoli sauce and more. The deal’s available Monday to Wednesday, 4pm to 6pm. 709 High Street, Armadale, orronghotel.com

.

Categories
Business

‘Easter’ quiet hits housing as auctions fall

'Easter' quiet hits housing as auctions fall

“Buyers are being cautious as they are concerned about the outlook,” Mr White said.

He said the high proportion of unsuccessful auctions was driven by the growing gap between vendor expectations and what the market was prepared to pay.

Despite this, Ray White managed to sell $4.6 billion of residential real estate last year, not far off the $4.76 billion it sold last year when house prices were booming.

Quietest since Easter

“Just because auction clearance rates have dropped does not mean it is a worse method of sale than private treaty. Clearance rates are a lot lower in private sales treaty,” he said, a point highlighted by the growing number of unsold, older listings.

Sydney, where house prices are falling at their fastest rate in 30 years, had its quietest auction week since the Easter long weekend with 476 homes offered under the hammer, according to CoreLogic.

Of these, 61 per cent sold under the hammer based on preliminary figures, up from 56 per cent last week. Domain reported a 57 per cent preliminary clearance rate, up from 56 per cent last week.

In Melbourne, auction clearance rates rose fractionally to 62 per cent despite volumes falling 23 per cent to 620, according to CoreLogic. Domain recorded a 59 per cent preliminary clearance rate, up from 58 per cent a week ago.

AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver said he expected a final clearance rate of 53 per cent in Sydney compared with an “August norm” of 68 per cent, and 55 per cent in Melbourne compared with 69 per cent.

sales still falling

“Clearance [rates] were up a bit again, but sales are depressed and still falling, and the trend is likely to remain down as rising mortgage rates continue to impact,” Dr Oliver said.

Nationally, the preliminary clearance rate rose by 0.7 of a percentage point to 59.5 per cent compared with a week ago – implying a final figure of about 55 per cent. This time last year, 74 per cent of auctions held were successful.

Each of the smaller capital cities had a decrease in auction activity this week, as Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra recorded declines in the preliminary clearance rates.

Adelaide recorded the strongest preliminary clearance rate, with 66 per cent of auctions reporting a successful result, followed by Canberra (49 per cent) and Brisbane (46 per cent).

The latest auction figures follow dwelling values ​​falling by 1.3 per cent in July, marking the third consecutive monthly fall, according to CoreLogic’s national Home Value Index.

Five of the eight capital cities recorded a month-on-month decline in July, led by Sydney and Melbourne where values ​​fell 2.2 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively.

Brisbane also edged into negative growth territory for the first time since August 2020, with values ​​down 0.8 per cent.

Dr Oliver said he expected Sydney’s house price falls to accelerate each month until the end of the year as rates rise.

“The pace of decline is gathering speed, so it’s conceivable we could be seeing monthly declines of 4 per cent in a few months which would surpass the peak monthly increase of 3.7 per cent in March last year,” Dr Oliver said.

Mr White said the outlook depended on where interest rates ended up.

“For every negative there are positives. Unemployment is low and immigration is coming back. If you look back in history, in Sydney there has been a dip and then things flatten out,”

The question for buyers, he said, was how long to wait.

Categories
Business

Grandmother claims Gold Coast McDonald’s staff mocked her and refused her service

A grandmother says the treatment of workers at a Gold Coast McDonald's bullied and refused to serve her - with her special needs granddaughter now too scared to return

Grandmother claims McDonald’s staff mocked her and refused to serve her after ‘cold fries complaint’ in front of her granddaughter – who is now too scared to return

  • Grandmother bullied and refused to be served by staff at Gold Coast McDonald’s
  • Tracey Lantern claims she attended Ormeau chain last month and complained
  • She returned last Saturday where staff laughed at her and granddaughter
  • Special needs child cried and is too scared to go back to the restaurant

By Sam McPhee For Daily Mail Australia

Published: | Updated:

A grandmother claims workers at a McDonald’s bullied and refused to serve her – with her granddaughter now too scared to return.

Tracey Lintern said she visited the Ormeau fast food outlet on the Gold Coast more than a month ago, asking staff to keep her fries warm while she ordered other food.

She then attended the same restaurant last Saturday, and claimed staff mocked and belittled her, before refusing to serve her food.

A grandmother says the treatment of workers at a Gold Coast McDonald's bullied and refused to serve her - with her special needs granddaughter now too scared to return

A grandmother says the treatment of workers at a Gold Coast McDonald’s bullied and refused to serve her – with her special needs granddaughter now too scared to return

Ms Lantern was with her granddaughter at the time, who has anxiety and PTSD, who started to cry after the alleged treatment.

‘She’s crying saying “Grandma what’s going on”,’ the grandmother told the Gold Coast Bulletin.

‘No one served me, so I just walked out.’

Ms Linter picked up an order of a single hot fries for a friend the first time she visited the McDonald’s.

She had recently moved into the area and was ‘so excited’ there was a McDonald’s nearby.

After arriving she decided to order more food, asking servers to keep the food warm.

When the chips were given to her, Ms Linter said they were cold and asked for a new order, which staff did.

The grandmother then turned up last Saturday, where she claims staff immediately treated her poorly.

‘I was buying dinner for all the family so I decided to go inside with such a large order,’ she said.

‘The same [worker] was on. As soon as she saw me she started to talk about me to other staff members.

‘I wasn’t even at the counter yet, then they all turned around at me to see who she was talking about.’

Ms Linter said the staff mocked her before refusing to take her order - humiliating her and her granddaughter (stock image)

Ms Linter said the staff mocked her before refusing to take her order – humiliating her and her granddaughter (stock image)

Ms Lantern said a worker alerted other staff, who turned and laughed at the grandmother.

After walking to the counter to complain about the treatment, a female employee said she wouldn’t serve her because ‘last time you came in you were rude’.

The employee then allegedly threatened to call security, prompting Ms Linter’s granddaughter to burst into tears.

‘I was so excited when I moved here that McDonald’s was so close, as I would normally go twice a day, but now I can’t bring myself to go,’ Ms Linter said.

‘Why would you want to go back for that treatment, all over wanting hot chips?’

McDonald’s said it was investigating Ms Linter’s complaint.

‘We do not tolerate anti-social behavior and won’t accept abuse, intimidation, threats or violence towards our employees,’ it said.

‘Our employees have the right to be treated with respect and feel safe in their workplace.

‘We have received the customer’s complaint and it is being reviewed by our team.’

advertisement

.

Categories
Business

High-voltage powerline projects spark mixed emotions across regional Victoria and NSW

bold yellow and black sign opposing energy transmission towers outside supermarket

The mouth-watering scent of freshly baked baguettes mingles with irresistible wafts of buttercream and powdered sugar.

Smartly dressed customers alternate delicate bites of mille-feuille with sips of café.

row of french pastries and baguettes inside cabinet at store
Le Péché Gourmand’s pastries are a favorite among Creswick locals and tourists.(ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic )

Everything about Creswick’s Le Péché Gourmand Boulangerie-Patisserie whispers provincial France, but a bold red sign in the corner of the shop front screams western Victoria:

“Stop AusNet’s Towers. Join the fight.”

The town and surrounding district’s push to halt plans to construct above-ground powerlines for AusNet’s Western Renewables Link has been running for years.

Handmade protest signs are fixtures on farm gates, fences, and in businesses throughout the region; even the Big Spud on Ballarat-Daylesford Road has its own “Piss Off AusNet” placard.

Country road in western Victoria with ute and roadside potato shop on the left
Signs opposing AusNet’s Western Renewables Link are a common sight across western Victoria. (ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic)

In March, local farmers opposing the project rallied at Parliament House in Melbourne, and most recently drove tractors through Ballarat’s CBD.

Le Péché Gourmand co-owner Marie Williams says she fears it is these farmers who could pack up and leave the region if AusNet’s plans go ahead and, consequently, crush her customer base.

“We’re really worried about it, to be honest,” Ms Williams said.

“If the farmers aren’t there anymore, we lose half our customers.”

woman in brown dress with slight smile stands in bakery
Creswick business owner Marie Williams is concerned about the impact the transmission lines will have on the region.(ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic)

Ms Williams and her husband moved from Sydney to Creswick 10 years ago to escape city life. She said the Western Renewables Link would puncture the town’s bucolic surrounds with unsightly towers, turning off tourists.

“Looking at towers isn’t the most pleasant thing. It’s hard to grasp how far it’ll go and how much it’s going to affect the region,” she said.

More transmission lines on the horizon

Last week further plans for another transmission line through western Victoria were released by AEMO (Australian Energy Market Operator) and Transgrid.

map of planned transmission lines across Victoria and part of New South Wales
VNI West is designed to connect to other projects, including the Western Renewables Link. (Source: AEMO)

Pitched as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by the energy operators, the Victoria to New South Wales Interconnector West (VNI West) power link aims to allow the two states to share electricity.

AEMO spokesperson Jonathon Geddes said the development would “increase network resilience, energy reliability and put downward pressure on electricity prices for homes and businesses”.

Councils divided

Under the plan, 500 kilovolt (kV) double-circuit overhead transmission lines would snake from the Snowy Hydro grid in New South Wales, through to a proposed terminal station at Newlyn, in the Hepburn Shire.

Woman with short hair, wearing a white shirt and black jacket, smiling standing among trees
Mayor Ruth McRae urges locals to join the consultation process.(Supplied: Murrumbidgee Regional Council)

Ruth McRae, the mayor of Murrumbidgee Shire Council in the Riverina, said the council “fully supports strategies to generate and deliver affordable and secure energy to our nation.”

“Energy costs form a large part of the household budget so most people would support this concept,” Councilor McRae said.

She stressed, however, that the project’s “greatest impacts are borne by local landholders and community.”

“This project affects us all and we urge the community to get involved with the consultation process and make their views known,” she said.

red sign which reds stop ausnet's towers in window of Creswick business
The sign in the window of Le Péché Gourmand sends a strong message.(ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic )

Hepburn Shire Council — which takes in the towns of Clunes, Creswick, Daylesford, Hepburn Springs and Trentham — has voiced strong opposition to the proposal, echoing its stance on the Western Renewables Link.

Deputy Mayor Jen Bray told ABC Ballarat Breakfast the council was “not opposed to renewable energy”, but how it was delivered was important.

She said the council was seeking an underground solution for the powerlines, along with a different location for the transmission station proposed for Mount Prospect in the village of Newlyn.

sign with red cross over transmission lines and towers on farm gate fence
Hepburn Shire Council is concerned about the Western Renewables Link and VNI West.(ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic)

“It’s going to set up Hepburn Shire as a central hub for a series of lines that could be radiating out, much like the spokes of a cartwheel,” she said.

“It’s not really what you want in an area where you’ve got high-quality, premium agricultural land.

“It’s not what you want in an area where your main tourism economy is reliant on beautiful, pristine landscapes.”

But Mr Geddes said high-voltage underground lines along the full length of the project was “not economically justifiable”.

“We acknowledge the importance of considering all reasonably practicable route refinement options, which may, in exceptional circumstances, include partial undergrounding short distances,” he said.

Tractors in Ballarat
More than 70 tractors took to the streets in Ballarat to protest the Western Renewables Link.(Rural ABC: Jane McNaughton)

Projects ‘can be done better’

If the projects come to fruition as planned, Newlyn potato farmer Kain Richardson’s property will be surrounded by transmission lines, and have the VNI West transmission station at his “back doorstep.”

“There’s been no consideration given to the people,” he said.

Mr Richardson, a fifth-generation farmer, said neither proposal was utilizing “modern-day technology”.

cloudy horizon from farm with sheep on mostly green grass
Farmer Kain Richardson’s property in the town of Newlyn. (ABC Ballarat: Lexie Jeuniewic )

“We’ve moved on from the time [transmission towers] were built in the 1960s. Do you want to go back to leaded cars?” he asked.

“Why is transmission being left out of the technology advancements, and landholders have to accept that? It’s not on.”

Mr Richardson said he was yet to receive any communication from AEMO or Transgrid about the VNI West project since the project assessment draft report was released.

“It leaves a lot to be desired,” he said.

AEMO Victorian Planning and Transgrid will hold online information sessions on August 10 and August 25. Registration is required.

.

Categories
Business

Fixing inflation isn’t hard. Returning to healthy growth is

Fixing inflation isn't hard. Returning to healthy growth is

See how we were caught in a low-growth trap? Weak growth leads to low business investment, which leads to little productivity improvement, which leads to more weak growth.

During the Dreadful Decade, the prevailing view among policymakers was that high unemployment was preferable to high inflation, which might become entrenched. So, unemployment was left high, to keep inflation low.

Yetsenga says this decision to entrench relatively high unemployment was a mistake. “Unemployment, underemployment and the inequality they contribute to, all affect macroeconomic outcomes [adversely]“.

“Those on higher incomes tend to save more, reducing consumption, but those on lower incomes tend to borrow more. Inequality, in other words, trends to lower economic growth and exacerbate financial vulnerability.”

Even so, Yetsenga is optimistic. The policy response to the pandemic has “changed the baseline” and we’re in the process of escaping the low-growth trap.

To employ more people, give more hours to those working part-time, and raise wage growth, business needs to see demand strong enough to pay for the labour.

ANZ Bank economist Richard Yetsenga

Unemployment is at its lowest in five decades and underemployment has fallen significantly. Real consumer spending is 9 per cent above pre-pandemic levels, and businesses’ capacity utilization has been restored to high levels not seen since before the global financial crisis.

As a result, planned spending on business investment in the year ahead is about the highest in nearly three decades.

Yetsenga says the Reserve would like some of the rise in the rate of inflation to be permanent. “If monetary policy can deliver [annual] inflation of 2.5 per cent over time, rather than the 1.5 to 2 per cent that characterized the pre-pandemic period, it’s not just the rate of inflation that will be different.

“We should expect the ‘real’ side of the economy to have improved as well: more demand, more employment and more investment.”

“The role of wages in sustaining higher inflation is well known, but wage growth doesn’t occur in a vacuum. To employ more people, give more hours to those working part-time, and raise wage growth, business needs to see demand strong enough to pay for the labour.

“Some of the additional labor spend will be passed on to higher selling prices. The need to invest in more labor is likely to go hand-in-hand with more capital investment.”

The Australian economy created 60,600 new jobs in May.

The Australian economy created 60,600 new jobs in May.Credit:Bloomberg

I think Yetsenga makes some important points. First, the policy of keeping unemployment high so that inflation will be low has come at a price to growth and contributed to the low-growth trap.

Second, inequality isn’t fair about fairness. Economists in the international agencies are discovering that it causes lower growth. So, the policy of ignoring high and rising inequality has also contributed to the low-growth trap.

Third, the idea that we can’t get higher economic growth until we get more productivity improvement has got the “direction of causation” the wrong way around. We won’t get much productivity improvement until we bring about more growth.

Pandemic Panic

Despite all this, I don’t share Yetsenga’s optimism that the shock of the pandemic, and the econocrats’ switch to what I call Plan B – to use additional fiscal stimulus in the 2021 budget to get us much closer to full employment, as a last-ditch attempt to get wage rates growing faster than 2 or 2.5 per cent a year – will be sufficient to bust us out of the low-growth trap.

Yetsenga’s emphasis is on increasing household income by making it easier for households to increase their income by supplying more hours of work. He says little about households’ ability to protect and increase their wage income in real terms.

Another consequence of the pandemic period is the collapse of the consensus view that wages should at least rise in line with prices. Real wages should fall only to correct a period when real wage growth has been excessive.

But so panicked have the econocrats and the new Labor government been by a sudden sharp rise in prices (the frightening size of which is owed almost wholly to a coincidence of temporary, overseas supply disruptions) that they’re looking the other way while, according to the Reserve’s latest forecasts, real wages will fall for three calendar years in a row.

loading

Since it’s the easiest and quickest way of getting inflation down, they’re looking the other way while the nation’s employers – government and business – short-change their workers by a cumulative 6.5 per cent.

This makes a mockery of all the happy assurances that, by some magical economic mechanism, improvements in the productivity of labor flow through to workers as increases in their real wage.

Sorry, I won’t believe we’ve escaped the low-growth trap until I see that, as well as employing more workers, businesses are also paying them a reasonable wage.

Ross Gittins is the economics editor.

Categories
Business

Elon Musk says $63.7 billion Twitter takeover could move ahead with bot info

Elon Musk looks down at his smartphone.

Elon Musk says his planned $US44 billion ($63.7 billion) takeover of Twitter should move forward if the company can confirm some details about how it measures whether user accounts are “spam bots” or real people.

The billionaire and Tesla CEO have been trying to back out of his April agreement to buy the social media company, leading Twitter to sue him last month to complete the acquisition.

Mr Musk countersued, accusing Twitter of misleading his team about the true size of its user base and other problems he said amounted to fraud and breach of contract.

Both sides are headed toward an October trial in a Delaware court.

“If Twitter simply provides their method of sampling 100 accounts and how they’re confirmed to be real, the deal should proceed on original terms,” ​​Mr Musk tweeted.

“However, if it turns out that their SEC filings are materially false, then it should not.”

Mr Musk, who has more than 100 million Twitter followers, went on to challenge Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal to a “public debate about the Twitter bot percentage.”

Twitter declined to comment.

The company has repeatedly disclosed to the Securities and Exchange Commission an estimate that fewer than 5 per cent of user accounts are fake or spam, with a disclaimer that it could be higher.

Mr Musk waived his right to further due diligence when he signed the April merger agreement.

.