Virgin Australia ground crew will take a first step towards a possible strike as negotiations with the airline stagnate over pay, safety and job security. Cost-of-living pressures, low wages and unsustainable hours are weighing on Virgin employees with some forced to work second jobs to pay their mortgage or rent, the Transport Workers Union claims. The TWU said Virgin’s $129 million profit flies in the face of its workers, who are still subject to wage freezes and working conditions initially designed to be temporary COVID-19 measures. In a meeting with union representatives last Thursday, V ..read more

Some Australians are turning to low-level crime to survive, as households buckle under the soaring cost-of-living. More than one-in-10 Australians, or about 2.4 million people, confessed to having stolen from businesses in the past year as they reached financial breaking point, a survey of more than 1000 respondents from comparison website Finder has revealed. Over the past year, the average monthly Australian grocery bill has risen by seven per cent to $740, according to Finder’s Consumer Sentiment Tracker. The most common theft is happening at supermarket checkouts, with five per cent of pe ..read more

Australians are finding it harder to feed their families, with 3.7 million households going hungry in the past year. Foodbank Australia’s latest report released on Monday, has found 36 per cent of all households are struggling with food insecurity – an increase of 383,000 from a year earlier. Of those, 77 per cent cent are facing it for the first time. The Foodbank Hunger Report 2023 examined data taken from almost 4500 Australians and found 60 per cent of the households in trouble had someone living there in paid work. The researchers say the profile of those struggling is changing, with man ..read more

At first glance, a jar of black paste made of brewer’s yeast by-product mixed with salt, celery and onion might not be a top contender for a cultural touchstone. But 100 years after it was first developed by Cyril Callister in Port Melbourne as an imitation of British spread Marmite, Vegemite is a staple in every supermarket across the nation. Graeme Hughes, the director of Griffith University’s Business Lab, said the brand’s consistent communications and marketing strategy had helped to keep the unlikely product as a mainstay of Australian culture. “It’s a really positive and uplifting brand ..read more

Question 1 I was reading the question fom a reader about “super being dangerous” and would like assure them super is good. We have two super accounts – Commonwealth Super (DFRDB) and CFS from QSuper – all organised into fortnightly income and we both get a part age pension, again all organised by a financial planner. We pay no tax and have an income of about $78,000.  Best thing I ever did was to see our planner well before I retired. I am 74 and my wife is 75.  I love your positive comments and that you have taken the time to respond. People getting close to retirement often worry ..read more

A recent ‘X’ post from Treasurer Jim Chalmers made an interesting claim about Australia’s fiscal performance. It boasted that Australia’s “budget position” now ranks fourth-best among all G20 countries, improving from 15th place in 2021. His post graphically ascribes this improvement to the change in the Commonwealth government during the intervening period: The 2021 ranking is branded with the Coalition logo, the 2023 ranking with the ALP logo. Chalmers’ post does not define “budget position,” but it credits his government’s “responsible economic management” for ..read more

At first glance, a jar of black paste made of brewer’s yeast by-product mixed with salt, celery and onion might not be a top contender for a cultural touchstone. But 100 years after it was first developed by Cyril Callister in Port Melbourne as an imitation of British spread Marmite, Vegemite is a staple in every supermarket across the nation. Graeme Hughes, the director of Griffith University’s Business Lab, said the brand’s consistent communications and marketing strategy had helped to keep the unlikely product as a mainstay of Australian culture. “It’s a really positive and uplifting brand ..read more

To work from home or the office – that is the big dilemma facing employers and employees in the aftermath of pandemic restrictions. While many organisations survived the pandemic thanks to remote work, a rise in return-to-office mandates has sparked a tug-of-war between some employers and employees – and there might not be just one solution. About 87 per cent of companies in Australia have implemented mandatory office days for staff, with many employees expected to be in the office up to four days a week, according to research from specialised recruitment consultancy Robert Half. But 40 per c ..read more

A “significant minority” of Australians risk being left behind as the nation races towards a cashless society, a leading expert has warned, as new figures show banks are closing branches and ATMs at a breakneck pace. Figures published by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) this week show the number of bank branches nationwide has plunged 11 per cent over the past financial year and by 35 per cent since 2018. ATMs are also disappearing, with the number falling 11 per cent in the year to June, and 55 per cent since 2018. ‘Significant minorities’ Swinburne University adjunct pr ..read more

Like many Australians, Darren Burden was shocked by the rising cost of electricity at his rental in Kangaroo Valley, south of Sydney. “I’d been there for a month when I got my first bill,” he said. “I’ve never seen a bill so high. “It was over $500 and I thought this isn’t sustainable.” Burden decided to take matters into his own hands and started measuring to see if any particular device or source in his home was using a large amount of electricity. “The biggest thing was the pool pump, so I then thought I could do some small things and tweak it, which I did,” he said. “The next month, the b ..read more