Wed Sep 5, 2012, 07:33 AM

Aussies must compete with $2 a day workers: Rinehart

Source: ABC Australia

Gina Rinehart has used a rare video appearance to repeat her warning that Australians need to work harder to compete with Africans who will labour for less than $2 a day.

In a reference to BHP Billiton's reasoning for shelving its Olympic Dam expansion plans, Mrs Rinehart says companies are "running a ruler" over their investments because of cost overruns and low productivity.

Yesterday, Fortescue Metals Group announced it was deferring some expansion projects and cutting costs, although its reasoning for the move was focused on a slump in iron ore prices rather that cost overruns.

Speaking in video posted on the Sydney Mining Club's website to discuss the recently signed enterprise migration agreement which will allow her to import 1,700 foreign workers for her Roy Hill Iron Ore project, Mrs Rinehart says Australians should not be complacent about the investment pipeline given that African labourers will work for less than $2 a day.

Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-09-05/rinehart-says-aussie-workers-overpaid-unproductive/4243866?section=wa

This comes less than a week after telling the poor that they wouldn't be poor if they stopped being lazy and going to the pub and drinking...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014213024

5 replies, 1439 views

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5 replies	Author	Time	Post
Aussies must compete with $2 a day workers: Rinehart (Original post)	Violet_Crumble	Sep 2012	OP
Whole thing sounds very "old school," and in need of overturn. Ms. Rinehart should be handed a pick	leveymg	Sep 2012	#1
meanwhile Australia has just had 21 years of growth-perhaps high wages are the answer	Swagman	Sep 2012	#2
A universal poverty wage is the objective of the slave trade agreements.	Citizen Worker	Sep 2012	#3
Yep. nt	awoke_in_2003	Sep 2012	#4
Australia's Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard disagrees.	pampango	Sep 2012	#5

Response to Violet_Crumble (Original post)

Wed Sep 5, 2012, 07:42 AM

leveymg (26,334 posts)

1. Whole thing sounds very "old school," and in need of overturn. Ms. Rinehart should be handed a pick

and shovel and made to live on that $2/day for several months. Then, we'll see if she still sings the same tune that workers are lazy.

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Response to Violet_Crumble (Original post)

Wed Sep 5, 2012, 08:46 AM

Swagman (1,680 posts)

2. meanwhile Australia has just had 21 years of growth-perhaps high wages are the answer

to Gina who is on the way to become the world's richest person.

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Response to Violet_Crumble (Original post)

Wed Sep 5, 2012, 09:33 AM

Citizen Worker (1,785 posts)

3. A universal poverty wage is the objective of the slave trade agreements.

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Response to Citizen Worker (Reply #3)

Wed Sep 5, 2012, 09:39 AM

awoke_in_2003 (18,500 posts)

4. Yep. nt

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Response to Citizen Worker (Reply #3)

Wed Sep 5, 2012, 09:54 AM

pampango (13,986 posts)

5. Australia's Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard disagrees.

"It's not the Australian way to toss people a $2 gold coin and then ask them to work for a day," she said.

"We support proper Australian wages and decent working conditions for Australian people.

"We are not going to have wage rates the same as the wage rates in Africa. We're not going to compete on those kinds of cost differentials.

"We're going to compete on our great mineral deposits, our application of technology and high skills to the task. We mine differently than in other countries."

You may agree with the mine owner, Ms. Rinehart that Australia has to compete on wages with $2 a day African miners. I hope that the prime minister is right (so far she is) and you are wrong.

AFAIK, Australia has no trade agreements of any kind with any African country nor does any other developed country. So I'm not sure where your statement regarding 'slave trade agreements' was coming from.

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