In our current (and now it’s official) recessionary environment, herVoice is appalled that Australia’s federal politicians have accepted the “Discretionary Electorate Allowance” of just under $5,000 pa granted to them earlier this week.

The key word is “discretionary”. If our pollies decide not to spend the allowance, they can keep it as taxable income. So for those parliamentarians who choose not to spend it on electoral expenses, the so-called “allowance” equates to a de facto pay rise of almost $100 per week.

Not a pretty picture against a backdrop of small business owners struggling to remain viable in today’s economic climate, workers accepting wage cuts to retain their jobs, working Australians losing their homes and pensioners struggling to survive day to day.

It’s bad enough that the “allowance” was granted at all in the current climate, but it’s even worse that at the time of writing, the silence from the major parties against accepting the payment is deafening.

The ABN is an apolitical organisation and has no affiliation with any political party.  However,  from a natural justice perspective herVoice commends Bob Brown, the Greens and Nick Xenophon for their stance against accepting the payments.  There might be integrity in politics after all.

But if there is, the major parties aren’t displaying  theirs -  it’s a total disgrace that well-paid and politically astute parliamentarians  are fiddling with their allowances while our economy burns.

Bank exit fees in the firing line

The Federal Government is considering banning bank ‘exit fees’ to help borrowers frustrated by the failure of lenders to pass on interest-rate cuts.

Cabinet sources report that the Government is furious at the banks’ refusal to pass on the most recent 0.25 per cent cut in full, accusing them of ‘hijacking’ monetary policy as the Reserve Bank tries to free up cash in the economy.

Assistant Treasurer Chris Bowen said he was seriously considering including punitive bank exit fees in a banned list covering unfair contracts.

They would be part of a bill Mr Bowen plans to bring to Parliament in June. Draft legislation will be published next month.

You can read the full Bank Exit Fees story here.

We say “Bring it on, Chris!”

Allowing other banks to refuse to follow the direction taken by the Reserve Bank is poor fiduciary policy; and we can think of no other industry that exploits Australia’s competition policy by charging exorbitant exit fees to stop dissatisfied clients leaving.

The effect of this most recent grab for cash by the major banks will do nothing to support Australia’s SME’s - their bottom line will continue to be savaged by both clients’ and customers’ continuing lack of disposal income and the increased overheads that follow in the tail of bank’s refusal to cut interest rates.

The Australian Government has announced the introduction of the Fresh Ideas for Work and Family grants program to support Australian small businesses to implement practices that help employees balance their work and family obligations as well as improve employee retention and productivity.

The program provides grants of $5,000 to $15,000 (GST inclusive) to small businesses to help meet the set-up costs of family friendly arrangements that suit the individual needs of the business.

Further information on family friendly work arrangements and the program is available from The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

You can also call the Workplace Infoline from 8am to 7pm Monday to Friday on 1300 363 264, or email FIWF@deewr.gov.au for further information.

The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research recently updated the ABN on the progress of the Small Business and General Business Tax Break announced on 3 February.

We were interested to note the example provided by Sen Carr of a tradesperson who purchases a $30,000 utility before the end of the financial year being able to claim an additional $9,000 deduction in their 2008-09 tax return (as as long as they used the vehicle primarily for business purposes).

With its stipulation that eligible assets have to be purchased before the end of the financial year to get the full 30% bonus deduction, it looks a little like a de facto last minute economic stimulus strategy wrapped in a tax break’s clothing to herVoice - but as long as small business benefits, we really don’t mind what the Govt calls it!

The legislation is still before Parliament, but anyone wishing to find out how it will impact on small business if it’s passed in its current form, can click on this link to access a list of frequently asked questions.

PAID parental leave would cost taxpayers half as much as the Government’s key economic adviser says; and would create an extra 8900 jobs by stimulating the economy.

In a paper to be released today, the Australia Institute has challenged the Productivity Commission’s costings for a publicly funded parental leave scheme and warned of the economic costs of stalling on the measure.

The Australia Institute’s analysis has put the cost to government of paying a parent a minimum wage for 18 weeks to care for their newborn at $225 million, well down on the Productivity Commission’s estimate of $450million.

What do you think?  Can our economy carry an additional deficit of $2.25 billion in these challenging times?  Is paid parental leave a necessity, or an expensive luxury, in light of the hundreds of thousands Australians struggling to make ends meet on aged, sole parent and disability pensions?  Could the money be better spent elsewhere?

You can read the full story from The Australian newspaper here: http://tinyurl.com/cv2kmu

THE global recession has helped to make history in Australia with the number of working women in full-time and part-time jobs surpassing the number of men in full-time jobs for the first time on record last month.

The gender gap in favour of women is small on paper: just 5000 jobs.  But just a year ago, the advantage to full-time men over all working women was a still respectable 123,000.

Recent surveys show that in Australia women do the bulk of the housework, cooking, shopping and childcare, on top of their work outside the home.  Women’s alcohol consumption is increasing to dangerous levels and we are suffering more and more from lifestyle diseases.

Are these things connected?  What do you think?   And is there anything the ABN could propose to Government to help women manage their increasingly large workload and its impact on their well-being?  

For the full story, visit today’s The Australian newspaper.

Today’s media has triumphantly and repetitively trumpeted the fact that forty-something “Dancing with the Stars” host Sonia Kruger has “admitted” to using Botox and having her teeth cosmetically enhanced. 

This is news?

It makes me wonder what we’ve come to as a society, where a middle aged woman’s right to privacy is ignored in the interests of commercialism.  Yes, if we believe what we read, Sonia “admitted” that she has attempted to maintain her youthful looks by having a little cosmetic work done, but what choice did she have but to smilingly make her “admission” when confronted by a reporter hungry for a story – any story – regardless of the sensitivities behind it? 

Anna Bligh, Queensland’s 48 year old Premier, suffered the same indignity when her Botox use was reported last year; Nicole Kidman has been attacked by the media and the public for her reliance on cosmetic enhancement;  even Paul Hogan was outed when it became apparent he’d undergone plastic surgery some years ago.

These people and their colleagues of a similar age live in the public eye and compete for work daily against younger, fresher looking, equally talented people.  Of course many of them are going to do whatever they can to make themselves as marketable as possible – it’s a commercial imperative for some; and a personal choice for others.

Regardless of their reasons, my thoughts are that not only is it their own business, but that hunting down celebs to drag out from them comments stating the obvious is an indication of very lazy journalism. Would the content of today’s story have surprised or educated anyone?  I think not.

What do you think?  Are exposés about celebs’ cosmetic enhancement sizzling news items – or just ho hum,  more of the same, boring space fillers?

The Autumn edition of the herVoice newsletter highlights an issue that affects all of us – the impact of the global economic climate on Australian business.

In the feature article, ABN Board member and business strategist, Susan Wareham McGrath writes about the current situation and provides plenty of practical tips and tools to assist your business in surviving the recession through the use of innovation, planning and smart management strategies.

Here’s a link to the Thriving - Not just Surviving Newsletter - for Women in Business .

Let us know your thoughts.