Read the high-flying bank CEO’s blunt advice for Australia’s poorest workers as he rakes in a $6 million a year wage package
- NAB CEO tells Australia’s poorest people to ‘look around’
A high-flying bank CEO who pays more than $6 million a year has ordered Australia’s minimum wage workers to find another job.
Ross McEwan, managing director of National Australia Bank, appeared on ABC Radio National Thursday morning to discuss possible future rate hikes.
When asked if the minimum wage should rise, Mr McEwan told breakfast presenter Patricia Karvelas: ‘I think those who are on that minimum wage should take a look around if they really aren’t happy with their jobs.
“There are jobs and I think if people aren’t happy they should quietly find another job.
“The minimum wage is just that, the minimum wage. I would have thought most employers would pay a lot more to hire great people in their companies.”
Ross McEwan, director of the National Australia Bank, believes that the minimum wage should not be increased
Mr. McEwan receives $6.3 million annually in his role as CEO and CEO of NAB.
It was revealed earlier this month that NAB earnings rose to $4.1 billion on the back of skyrocketing interest rates to 3.85 percent.
Mr McEwan said bank profits were boosted by higher interest rates and an explosion in corporate lending.
“The environment of higher interest rates has also been a major short-term source of income during this period,” he said at the time.
The Fair Work Commission will decide in June whether to give Australia’s 2.7 million lowest paid workers the biggest wage increase in a generation to help them cope with the cost of living crisis.
But any minimum wage increase that keeps pace with inflation is likely to lead to further inflation and job losses – with honest restaurants most at risk of losing customers, a former industry umpire told Daily Mail Australia.
When asked on RN Breakfast whether the minimum wage should be raised, his blunt response was: ‘Those people should find another job’
The Fair Work Commission’s decision directly affects 180,000 retail, tourism and hospitality workers, who are expected to take home an additional $49 a week.
A six percent increase in the minimum wage is tipped to moderate inflation by June.
Such minimum wage increases are often repeated in national awards – covering more than 2.67 million Australians.
Professor Mark Wooden, who previously served on the Fair Work Commission’s annual wage review panel, said restaurants could cut staff if price hikes made to fund higher wages reduce consumer demand.
Wage theft, in which dishonest employers do not pass on the increase in the minimum wage, can also harm honest entrepreneurs.
While an increase in the minimum wage has been a boon to low-wage workers, it leads to bad outcomes for consumers as companies pass the extra costs on to the final buyer and jobs are cut.
“Either they have to pass the price on to the consumer, which I think most of them will,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
But some may feel – especially if their competitors aren’t paying the going rate – “Maybe they should cut a Tuesday or just work fewer hours or maybe cut a few employees here or there.”
“If they raise their prices, they might notice that fewer consumers are coming in — so if we pay $50 for our steak instead of $40 or $39 for your parmigiana instead of $30, a few fewer plates will be sold.” .’