| Australia Basic Wage Fair Work Commission Wikipedia State Library Victoria Fair Work Australia Youth U16 36.8% 16yrs 47.3% 17yrs 57.8% 18yrs 68.3% 19yrs 82.5% 20yrs 97.7% Adult | US Govt Debt US Treasury |
|---|---|
| 1788 One shilling and sixpence per day | $70 million |
| 1797 During Napoleonic wars UK suspends gold payments until 1821 | |
| 1835 | $33 thousand its lowest ever |
| 1865 Farm Labourer two shillings and sixpence per day Carpenter 10 shillings per day | $2 billion US suspends gold payments following American Civil War. 1862-1879 |
| 1907 Seven shillings per day or £2.2.0 per week Basic Award to support a "man, his wife, and three children" | $2 billion |
| 1914 During WW1 both UK and Australia suspend gold payments until 1925 | |
| 1922 £4.10.0 per week with widespread price rises following the First World War Paper money (i.e. a promise backed by 80 tonnes in gold reserves) had become all the rage following the Australian Notes Act of 1910 enabling banknotes issued via Australian Govt Treasury and cancelling those more fallible banknotes of individual banks | $25 billion, through the enormous expenditure of First World War and the setting up of the League of Nations |
| 1928 £4.9.6 per week | $18 billion |
| 1930 £3.1.1 per week during the Great Depression The 6 day week became a 5½ day (44 hour) week Australia & UK suspend gold payments In 1935 the Printers Union wins one week of paid leave | Drops to $16 billion in 1930 then rapidly increases under Roosevelt's "New Deal" |
| 1938 £4.1.0 per week | $40 billion Fair Labour Standards Act under President Roosevelt establishes a basic wage of 25 cents per hour i.e. $US10 for a 40 hour week. Equivalent to £2.10.0 in Australia, with the US dollar worth 5 shillings. In 1940 and WW2 it rose to 6s.2d. |
| 1946 £5.0.0 per week In 1945 the Annual Holidays Act provides two weeks of paid leave | $250 billion due to WW2, followed by the US setting up United Nations and providing help to West Germany, Japan, South Korea, other economies worldwide |
| 1947 £7.2.0 per week In 1948 the 5 day week introduced | |
| 1950 £8.2.0 per week | With the 1949 devaluation of UK and AU currencies, the US dollar in Australia now had become 8s.11d. |
| 1953 £11.16.0 per week with considerable inflation following the Second World War Between 1951-1955 Qld, NSW and Victoria passed legislation granting 13 weeks long service leave to all employees with 15 years or more service, a benefit unique to Australia | |
| 1960 £13.16.0 per week | $300 billion |
| 1961 £14.8.0 per week In 1963 Commonwealth Industrial Court adopts three weeks paid leave | |
| 1966 $32.80 (£16.8.0) per week In 1966, the AU dollar was launched, worth 10 shillings | |
| 1967 $40 (£20) per week ($1.00 per hour) | |
| 1969 $54 per week In October 1968 the minimum hourly wage was $1.35 | $350 billion |
In 1971, President Nixon cancelled the fixed US dollar to gold exchange rate for central banks since 1934 at US$35 per ounce
Click here for our experience in Australia with Gough Whitlam's "seat of the pants" government Dec 1972 - Nov 1975. Free Universities, Free Medical, wow.
| Australia Basic Wage | US Govt Debt |
|---|---|
| 1972 $80 per week In 1974 four weeks paid leave plus 17½% loading | $450 billion |
| 1976 $102 per week Wages have tripled over 10 years through "stagflation" | $620 billion |
| 1978 $120.80 per week | $770 billion |
| 1980 $134.80 per week
In 1983 the 38 hour week introduced | $1 trillion |
| 1987 $178.24 per week | |
| 1990 $214.49 per week | $3 trillion |
| 1995 $284.45 per week | |
| 1997 $359.40 per week | In 1999 UK issued their first nation-wide basic wage at £3.60 per hour £144 for a 40 hour week (ca $360 in Australia) |
| 2000 $400.40 per week | $6 trillion |
| 2010 $569.90 per week | $13 trillion |
| 2020 $753.80 per week | $27 trillion |
| 2023-2024 $882.80 per week plus 11% compulsory superannuation according to ABC nearly the highest in the world | $32 going on $34 trillion. In January 2023, Treasury technically "bumped up" against $31.4 trillion, the previous limit. In February 2024 it was estimated at $34.27 trillion.
Federal minimum wage rose from 25 cents per hour in 1938 to $7.25 per hour in 2009, but has not been raised since. That's $US290 per week (and in Australia equivalent to $AU445.00 in 2024). Note too that many states have legislated much higher minimum wages. |
Just before midnight on Friday 22 March 2024 in Republican dominated US Congress, an approved increase provided funding for key federal agencies including Homeland Security, Justice, State and Treasury until about September. It largely tracks with an agreement in May 2023 which suspended the debt ceiling into January 2025 so the US government could continue paying its bills.
Back to Australia. In June 2023 $882.80 per week, which becomes $176.56 per day, which is 250 times the seven shillings daily wage of 1907.
A fair increase in inflation over these 116 years. At that 250 fold rate of increase, and accelerating another 53.53 times as this was the acceleration factor over the 4.67 increase that occurred between 1780 and 1907, by 2139 we could all be earning over $1 million per day.
Not bad.
Prior wages in UK: in 1640 (10d daily), in 1583 (8½d), in 1541 (6½d), in 1401 (4d), in 1351 (3d), in 1261 (2d), earlier for perhaps 1,200 years (1d).
Yes, at these times, may we keep our eye on the Lord. Let our eye be single, having "dove's eyes".
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