FF:NZ Minimum wage to rise ...

To $7.20 for youth, and $9 for adults.

I'm already earning $9 an hour ... wonder if I can request a raise?

But seriously, great news for workers.

 

Oh my god. Are you serious?! The last two summer jobs (and this one is continuing through the year as I've been asked to continue working weekends) were both at $12 and I wont work for less than that. $9 is pathetic. (not saying your work is pathetic, but after tax etc it's just not much dosh unless you're working LONG days.)

Definitely ask for a raise Kitt!

 

I'm keeping an eye out for a part time job..... But the one thing I dont want to be is a checkout B***H..

What's the minimum age to get a job at the movies?

 

$9 is pretty pathetic. The minimum wage in Britain is something like 4.50, thats about 12 bucks... but of course this isn't Britain. I used to get $10.50 as a kitchen hand at ChCh Casino... now I'm on $9.12 at McDonalds... I'm not that fussed really, it's only a part time job.

 

I used to work as an employment officer at Student Job Search at Auckland University. I was always amazed at how little employers were willing to pay students. I always tried to talk the hourly rate up a bit when talking to people, and the standard excuse was
"I thought these students were poor and needed the money."
errr ... yeah, sure. They're so poor that they love to be exploited.

One thing that really disturbed me was people who only wanted to pay 3 or 4 dollars an hour for childcare. I mean, how much value do you place on your child? Scary ...

> The minimum wage in Britain is something like 4.50, thats about 12 bucks

I'm pretty sure that you wouldn't be able to buy a small hamburger and a drink at McDonalds in the UK for that much. UK4.50 buys a lot less in the UK that NZ$12 does in NZ

 

I'm pretty sure that you wouldn't be able to buy a small hamburger and a drink at McDonalds in the UK for that much. UK4.50 buys a lot less in the UK that NZ$12 does in NZ

It depends on what you're buying. Some things are a lot cheaper over there, somethings aren't. I guess it's all relative.

 

SJS actually has a rule that you can't renegoiate the wage with employer, which makes it harder when you get these low-paying jobs. But at the time I took it on, I was three weeks into the summer break and still no luck finding a job, so I didn't really think twice about taking it. Plus I turned up for the interview, and they put me to work right away.

The job actually involves quite a lot of different skills ... its a wholesaler importing company, and I maintain an Access database, take photographs of the products, design and create advertising brochures in Word, and handle about 25 inbound customer service calls a day. I guess, at the end of the day, I did gain a lot of experience, but I'm glad to be back at uni next week.

Youagain ... a friend of mine was working at a village movie theatre at age 16, but she had worked at KFC for quite a while previously. Its defintely one of the best student jobs out there ... you get to see all the movies in advance through special staff screenings.

e: STH, speaking of you working at SJS .. you know, I still laugh everytime I remember that story you told us about the employee ringing up saying he wanted a bunch of Samoan guys to act as waiters at a party ... wearing no shirts and bow ties, or something. I wonder if the minimum wage applied there

 

So the Min Wage has gone up to $9, up? Man what was it before cos that is v low.

At my current job i'm getting $11 which is alright, though i was making upwards of $25 over summer doing contractual work.

I wish I didn't have to go to my current job though, I have to though cos Studylink just told me I don't qualify for a living allowance anymore, so I'm having to juggle uni around work instead of the other way which sux

 

Hmmm, I'm making $9/hr now. And my 'contract' ends at the end of March. *sigh* Anyone know what the movie theatres in Christchurch pay per hour? Or if Reading Cinemas are hiring now? Cause I wouldn't mind flipping my jerk boss the finger and working there! Hello free movies!

 

> SJS actually has a rule that you can't renegoiate the wage with employer, which makes it harder when you get these low-paying jobs.

The reson for that is basically because employers don't want to advertise a job at a particular rate, only to have someone turn up and demand more money that the job was advertised for. Obviously, if that happens too often employers aren't going to have any faith in the service, and that affects everyone. (The SJS employment officers usually work pretty hard to get the rates as high as possible when the advertise the job.)

There are exceptions, of course. If you got a job, worked there for a few months, got more responsibility and built up a good relationship with the employer, no one would begrudge you asking for your salary/wage to be increased.

Its worth noting that the SJS employees actually get paid a fairly crap hourly rate, and over the summer break work incredibly hard. When I worked there I usually took a hell of a lot of crap from both students and employers, when all I was trying to do was actually help people. The job makes you question the intelligence of 75% of the student body. The number of people who won't both turning up to jobs, won't go to interviews, or turn up to a building site for a labouring job with no shoes ... One student expected me to give him bus money so they could get to a job etc. etc.

 

Everything goes up with inflation ... except how much money tertiary students get to live on.

The dole-bludger in the apartment below me gets more money from the Beehive each week than I do.

Ohhh well, I'm going to get revenge on the Beehive in the future....

 

I worked full-time at placemakers in Wellington and i was on $9, i didn't mind because i was livin at home and saving for my car, i am movin up to auckland an i got a part-time job at Placemakers-i am on $10.50, the part-timers in wellington only got $8 an hr, i guess the reason u get more in auckland is because it is more expensive to live in than wellington.