Executive salaries

[mashman]

A while ago there was a protest about pay rates at a Pak 'n Sav supermarket a friend of mine owns. Shelf packers were complainig about how they were getting roughly $400 per week while their boss was earning $4000 a week. Let me ask you this Mr Shelf Packer. Did you invest all your money and time setting up a business, an extremely risky affair? Did you spend hours and hours making contacts, negotiating deals with suppliers, signing contracts? Do you go home worrying about the state of the economy, market infuences, supply and demand rates, staff issues, tax issues, etc etc? Or did you just front up one day, have an interview, get a job (only there because someone else risked it all) and go home at the end of the day with none of the above issues? Do you have the skills to run such a business? No? Then shut the fuck up, be happy someone else does so you can have an income, or better yourself, realise your potential, and do it yourself. There is nothing stopping you. Except you.

Yeah and I'm sure your friend set it up for the people...but i would much prefer to be a house husband...

"or better yourself, realise your potential, and do it yourself. There is nothing stopping you. Except you."

I've made my choices and am living the only life I can lead at the moment... but think of others whilst I amble along.

[rainman]

yes - but NZ cannot survive self sufficient

Mr Mashman's argument may be at the extreme end of the spectrum, but the status quo ain't gonna keep working either.

What is NZ's future if we continue to blindly follow the "comparative advantage" approach, plus allow more overseas ownership (dairy, mining, ...), with minimal trade tariffs? How do we find our way back to prosperity? (Hell, a positive trade balance would do). We gonna get rich seling each other haircuts and hamburgers? Or just turn into tenants in our own country?

And people think the NWO is a left-wing wet dream.

[slowpoke]

Your argument is so flawed its ridiculous - It worries me that people like you are allowed to vote.

Nice to see that brainstorming and alternative thinking is encouraged at your workplace.....must be a bundle of laughs........

[mashman]

yes - but NZ cannot survive self sufficient - there is a whole world of things out there that people need - that are not made nor could be made in NZ.

How did people ever get along without trade... but they did. As long as you have the bare necessities (of life will come to you, they'll come to me, they'll come to you... ahhhh) what more do you really need. Anything after that is a step up no? a bonus for society, not just for those who said "it's my idea, i'm taking the lions share" because that's what this world is about... and they feed it to us day in day out...

Medicines, equipment etc - or do you expect us to go back to the dark ages?

Even the steel for the bridges for the roads has to come from someplace. Make it in NZ you say? Where do we get the equipment from to do so?

True, file it in the too hard basket... how the hell could we possibly cope in a financial world... it could be the end of life as we know it... who can live without money these days... especially when you can educate yourself and strive to be a more productive member of society...

Your argument is so flawed its ridiculous - It worries me that people like you are allowed to vote.

From your perspective perhaps... your only argument is that we need money... to me, money is a flawed system... one that's been proven not to work for thousands of years... Am sure the Maori really needed money, whew, lucky for them that the west appeared... coulda been a disaster... Luckily though, again, someone can punch a few numbers on a keyboard when you have a child and a fresh injection of capital is assigned to your government coffers... otherwise where does the money come from?

Don't worry, I don't vote... never have, never will.

[mashman]

Nice to see that brainstorming and alternative thinking is encouraged at your workplace.....must be a bundle of laughs........

ha ha ha... it's ok... someone else is doing the thinking for him

[mashman]

Mr Mashman's argument may be at the extreme end of the spectrum, but the status quo ain't gonna keep working either.

Damn, I need me a movement...

What is NZ's future if we continue to blindly follow the "comparative advantage" approach, plus allow more overseas ownership (dairy, mining, ...), with minimal trade tariffs? How do we find our way back to prosperity? (Hell, a positive trade balance would do). We gonna get rich seling each other haircuts and hamburgers? Or just turn into tenants in our own country?

And people think the NWO is a left-wing wet dream.

tenants in our own country I think.

[Mully]

Well, I for one am disappointed in this thread.

I had hoped it would become a discussion about Samantha Hayes and all things thereof.

[MisterD]

He kept his job cos he managed to convince everyone he was the only one who could fix the mess, dunno how the fuck he managed to avoid a massive pay cut though. Think 2degrees piggybacks on vodafone for the majority of the country, but have thier own cell towers in some major cities.

Reynolds was brought in because of his experience at BT when they were forced to un-bundle by the UK government...the bloke who was/is in charge of XT, Paul Hamburger, Director of Mobile is leaving when his contract's up in July.

[Tank]

Nice to see that brainstorming and alternative thinking is encouraged at your workplace.....must be a bundle of laughs........

The amusing thing it is - its just that we try to keep things within the bounds of reasonableness. There is thinking out of the box, and thinking out of your mind.

[spajohn]

Don't worry, I don't vote... never have, never will.

Must admit I don't understand that Mashman? What's the point in complaining on here, but not voting? It's a bit like watching porn but never actually getting a shag?!! :-)

[MaxB]

Reynolds was brought in because of his experience at BT when they were forced to un-bundle by the UK government...the bloke who was/is in charge of XT, Paul Hamburger, Director of Mobile is leaving when his contract's up in July.

Did you see the XT press conference? Heaps of man love but essentially ' You're my good mate Hamburger but you stuffed up now fuck off'. First class spin. Talk about fall guy.

He seems to forget that he was in charge and as such should fall on his sword. That was one of the worst corporate stuff ups in NZ history and yet he still keeps his job. Remember the Jetstream fiasco and the overcharging rort? All done under Reynolds watch.

Now Telecom have revised their profit forecast downwards, what's the betting that next year when this has all died down he gets a bonus?

[rainman]

Did you see the XT press conference? Heaps of man love but essentially ' You're my good mate Hamburger but you stuffed up now fuck off'. First class spin. Talk about fall guy.

He seems to forget that he was in charge and as such should fall on his sword.

Accountability for top execs is largely a myth. For one thing, they have better lawyers and can negotiate better exit clauses in their contracts. For another they can always just fire some of the next level down and look like they're fixing things.

One company I worked for, the CEO between various mergers etc was only in place for a bit short of two years, but in that time signed them up to stoopid contracts that destroyed the long term prospects of the business - essentially set up a JV that passed out the profits and pulled in the costs. Was he publicly sanctioned? Fired? Sued? Not so much, they paid him $3m to ferk off.

I would happily be incompetent for a few years if someone would pay me $3m to go away again. But I don't have the right contacts for that...

[mashman]

Must admit I don't understand that Mashman? What's the point in complaining on here, but not voting? It's a bit like watching porn but never actually getting a shag?!! :-)

ha ha ha... that's the main point of porn isn't it?

I'm not complaining... ok maybe a little... I'd rather complain here than vote there ... No party on this planet (apart from at the Heff mansion) is worthy of my vote... they offer me nothing... all they do is spend my tax money (and perpetuate that outdated concept) for me and more often than not, end up doing more harm than good through their frivolities and lack of concern for the man on the street... No thanks... I'd prefer that the driver stop the world at the next stop to let me off...

[mashman]

The amusing thing it is - its just that we try to keep things within the bounds of reasonableness. There is thinking out of the box, and thinking out of your mind.

How about... there is no box! your real limit is as far as you can think...

There is nothing stopping you. Except you.

[doc]

This is the sort of stuff those on executive salaries thrive on.