When it comes to workplace culture, Australia and the USA take hugely different approaches. So it should come as no surprise that when it comes to the rules of minimum wage, our two countries are also worlds apart:
Yo I just did the comparison of the American minimum wage compared to the Australian minimum wage. American= $10 AUD (approximately) Australian= $19.84 AUD (plus 25% more for casual workers) No wonder America is fucked
In the comments, both Australians and Americans came forward with their insights about the rules of minimum wage, as well as how both countries could improve.
Here are some of the best responses:
1. "FYI Australia has the highest minimum wage in the world, and very few people actually qualify for it. Most are covered by awards, which are usually higher."
"We also have much better minimum conditions than the US, such as a minimum four weeks paid holidays a year, much longer paid maternity leave than the US, paid paternity leave, paid sick leave, etc."
—u/16car
2. "When I lived in NSW, I wouldn’t work for less than $1,200 a week. At 40 hours a week, it worked out to about $35 an hour. I was working for a company that gave a lot in allowances though. Overtime allowance, Saturday allowance, Sunday allowance, away from home allowance, own car allowance, about 20 other allowances, too."
3. "The Aussie minimum wage isn't the American minimum wage. Currently, it's about $21 an hour. I would suggest that role would be in the order of $35 an hour as a casual, without leave or superannuation (our 'pension plan'), which you'd find very difficult to organise."
—u/wilful
4. "In most states of the USA, servers at restaurants get paid around $2.50 an hour, because it’s expected they’ll make more than minimum wage with tips. If they don’t, employers are supposed to make sure they get paid at least the $7.25."
—u/Jaaawsh
5. "About 2% of workers in the US actually make the federal minimum wage. Wages in the US need to be raised to about $20 an hour; raising the minimum wage a few dollars won’t have much impact."
—u/darlib
6. "Nothing in the USA is okay. The wealth gap is growing exponentially, on a daily basis. Our healthcare system is going to collapse within the year. Our social and political systems are shattered beyond repair/improvement. We're on the cusp of war with loosely/no defined sides. Our infrastructure is in shambles. I shudder at the shockwaves that will affect the rest of you around the world."
—u/Sixshot88
7. "I was a server in the US for four years, and I made $4.25 hourly and some nights wouldn’t even go home with $50 dollars. On top of that, I was told, 'Because you’re 17 and a server, we can legally take double out of your taxes' (which is completely illegal). The US sucks; everyone that lives here most likely wants to go."
—u/nikkililoia
8. "Functionally, wages are mostly higher in America. Median disposable income in the US is about $10K higher than AUS."
9. "The USA government dumps close to a trillion dollars a year in their war-machine, more than the next 12 countries combined, including the Aussies. That's why you can't have nice things like public healthcare/housing/education/ transportation. No one can save you; gotta do it yourselves."
10. "Australia's minimum wage is higher because our unions are better at negotiating than the government. We also don't enforce tipping culture, like the USA, because it's not the customer's job to pay employee wages. The business hired the employee, so the business must pay the employee."
"Having spent many years working in hospitality in my student days, we used to have American tourists complaining our restaurants are so expensive here, but at the end of the day, once you crunch the numbers and factor in exchange rates, it's actually fairly similar — we just don't pretend it's cheaper by not including taxes and tips, etc."
—u/schottgun93
11. "Minimum wage in NSW will net you around $20 per hour before tax. A shitty apartment will cost you a good $500-$600 a week. Most people rent with friends to spread the costs, but you'd still be looking at $300+ depending on where you live. Long story short, you're going to be busting your ass just to make rent each week, let alone food, utilities, or entertainment. If you can avoid it, don't live in Sydney (or any of the capital cities)."
12. "In Australia, usually any job that's not covered by a modern award [MA] or an enterprise agreement [EA] will be based on the minimum wage. MA and EAs have to either meet the minimum wage or be higher than it to pass the 'better off overall' test. You'll find usually these amounts are slightly higher than the minimum wage."
"But it’s a complicated system as the modern award has many wage rates within the award, retail level, etc., which determines what rate you’re on. Note that different wage rates may apply to people younger than 21. Trainees and apprentices may also get different rates."
—u/lolap2013
13. "Considering the USA's taxes are way higher than Australia, even 'average wages' aren't enough to cover for one person, much less two and more."
—u/narwhale1700
14. "In Australia, minimum wage is kind of a theoretical number that doesn't have much meaning in the real world these days. It's mostly used as a factor in award calculations or a benchmark. Literally nobody is working some fairytale job of exactly 38 hours a week, earning exactly $740.80. Hell, just the concept of stable full-time work for a direct employer at an indexed hourly wage or annual salary is practically a fairytale these days."
15. "American living in Australia here, with a simple, short answer. America is an oligarchy where people are kept poor and misinformed to control the masses easier and to pit them against each other, while the billionaires continue to corrupt the country, instead of helping the fellow man. The country's fucking rigged. In three years working and living in Australia, I have done more with my life than I have in my entire 27 years before it in America."
—u/tap2rage
16. "The reason why Australia has a high minimum wage is our historically strong unions. High minimum wages redistribute income from rich business owners to individual employees. But the individual employees then spend their earnings at businesses, which fully compensates the rich business owners. Everyone is better off under a higher minimum wage."
—u/chillin222
17. And finally: "Aussie here. When I started my first ever job as a 16-year-old, I was paid $10 an hour — and that was 30 years ago. I think it’s criminal what Americans get paid."
Do you think the minimum wage is fairly calculated in your country? Or are there other workplace rules that you think need to change first? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Reddit responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.