Tag Archives: Australia

The coronavirus response calls into question the future of super

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Warwick Smith

  Brendel/Unsplash, CC BY-NC Warwick Smith, University of Melbourne This article was first published in The Conversation. Understandably, given we are in a crisis, the government has baulked at including superannuation contributions in the A$140 billion worth of $1,500 per … Continue reading →

Posted in Ageing population, Australian politics, superannuation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Interviewed for ABC Podcast ‘The Signal’. How the dole bludger was born.

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Warwick Smith

I was interviewed about the history of unemployment in Australia and, more specifically, the history of how Australia has treated unemployed workers. We haven’t always been so punitive. For about 25 years after WW2 unemployment was seen as a collective … Continue reading →

Posted in radio interview, unemployment | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Governments haven’t always shirked responsibility for our low wages – The Conversation

Posted on December 12, 2017 by Warwick Smith

Post-war Australia experienced a boom with full employment and falling inequality. State Library of Queensland Warwick Smith, University of Melbourne For the last four years or so average wages in Australia have barely kept pace with inflation, meaning no real … Continue reading →

Posted in Economic theory, Inequality | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Too old to work, too young to die – The Monthly

Posted on October 3, 2016 by Warwick Smith

Pension changes, age discrimination and workplace automation are driving older Australians into poverty BY WARWICK SMITH First published in The Monthly Friday, 30th September 2016 The first of October is the International Day of Older Persons. The United Nations want … Continue reading →

Posted in Ageing population, Australian politics, Inequality | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Abbott’s love of coal is holding us back on emissions targets – The Drum

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Warwick Smith

Originally published at The Drum (ABC). By Warwick Smith Posted 11 Aug 2015, 4:23pm A larger emissions reduction target would have come at very little additional cost to GDP, but it would have involved the loss of jobs in the … Continue reading →

Posted in climate change, Sustainability | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Australia flying blind

Posted on June 24, 2014 by Warwick Smith

By Warwick Smith Originally published at the Australian Independent Media Network In this article Warwick Smith reports why the decision by the Australian Bureau of Statistics to discontinue many programs including the Measures of Australia’s Progress due to budgetary demands, is … Continue reading →

Posted in Australian politics, neo-classical economics, Political philosophy | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment