LTP, a joint venture between Germany’s Lufthansa Technik and the Philippines’ MacroAsia Corp., has invested $30 million to build the cavernous aircraft maintenance facility. It is expected to employ 400 Filipinos in high-technology and high-skilled jobs.
And yet another shonk! When will governments around the world wake up to the problems these are causing and either introduce their own, or tax their own companies in the same manner. If you don't know what an SEZ or Freeport is look up google and then put the pieces together of which countries are doing well in aviation. It's not rocket science!
I live here, the local manager for one of the big steel suppliers told me the contracts have not been signed yet. The frames have to be made in India and then shipped to MANILA. Buildings take a long time here to complete.
That's something grouped labour could be trying to push, working with their respective companies, to find a mutual advantage instead of just clashing heads... Unfortunately it seems some in charge rather make a fuss for personal carrier advancement in he political scene instead of mutual solutions.
Word is QF is sending their entire A380 fleet there for a retrofit. The cost of the hangar will be paid off in a very short time. None of the work done here in Oz!
Let's say a bit of turf at Avalon was quarantined as a "tax-free zone" where foreign airframes (or those VH- registered which spend a lot of time outside the jurisdiction) could be flown in for maint with no GST and other forms of tax break - would the cost to the customer airline then be competitive with MROs elsewhere (so including wages etc)?
If so, has this idea been floated to the gov't? "If you create this tax environment, for fixing foreign-reg equipment (so essentially an export), we'll not only save a few jobs, but actually create 400".
The gov't might lose a bit from the GST foregone, but would gain from the corporate and individual income tax and lower transfer payments for the (now-not unemployed) LAMEs.
Taildragger. The problem is if they agree to that with the airlines, then they set a dangerous precedent for all other industries that are currently offshoring.
Develop North Australia, embrace multiculturalism and welcome short term foreign workers to our shores To benefit from the export of our minerals and ores The world’s poor need our resources: do not leave them to their fate Our nation needs special economic zones and wiser government, before it is too late.
The Philippines are in on the act as well with Lufthansa Technik being afforded this special tax consideration helping to get the 380 maintenance. It is about time AIPA, AFAP, VIPA, JPC, ALAEA and the AWU etc take this TOGETHER with QANTAS, VIRGIN AUSTRALIA, JETSTAR and AIR AUSTRALIA to the government to allow us, all airline employees to have half a chance of competing. It is not just the pressure on wages due to the high dollar but more importantly, the massive difference in taxation that is hampering our ability to compete. It is government policy from both sides that is helping to export ALL our jobs.
Domestically we all compete, internationally however, we will continue to be slaughtered. VA employees you will fly to the States and may get a little more flying to ASIA, SA with new EDTO provisions but that probably is it. That's because you're not competing with airlines from an SEZ, instead your feeding them. This will help you domestically but do nothing for you internationally.
We need Australia to have an SEZ / Freeport in order to compete when it comes to International aviation because the logical conclusion is the revenue we're getting from these Australian companies at the moment will be gone, you may as well at least try to keep the jobs and PAYG tax. The government and opposition need to be lobbied as ONE industry. Does someone here have the skills to start a petition that could be passed through all our industry so that finally, we too, may have a voice?
I'd be happy to take a 50% pay cut if my income tax was cut to leave me no worse off. That would allow me to compete globally in the labour market. No political party is going to agree to that, however. The government's coffers would be a little worse off but I would still be spending the money in Australia, generating economic activity, paying GST and not drawing any benefits.
As it is, it looks like my job's going to disappear offshore meaning the tax is lost, the money is not being spent here leaving retailers worse off and I might start drawing the dole.
I doubt Gina's motives are about anything other than looking after Gina but our international competitiveness is about more than just salaries.
Anyone who thinks this benefits anyone apart from those 1% of the 1% sitting at the top have got rocks in their head.
Everybody loses.
Every country has some form of protectionism - about time we started using some of our own. Trade tarriffs in the USA, they want to get rid of the Australian PBS because they think it interferes with the competitiveness of their 'poor' pharmacuetical giants. The have farm subsidies to protect their farm workers. Frankly I dont blame them. Keeping the knowledge, land and ability to produce food locally is going to be more and more important - food security, expect to hear more of it. Instead of transporting food everywhere using fossil fuels. Try setting up a business in most Asian countries without a local 'partner' : protectionism.
The argument about high labour costs in Australia is a furphy. Australian workers are far more efficent than their American and Asian counterparts. The Asian/US worker may get paid only 1/2 as much but there are two or three of them employed. Been in to a US department store lately? Australian systems are far more efficient and developed.
The government and the country loses through loss of taxation revenue - but the 'free zone' still needs 'paid for' infrastructure.
Blaming unions is rhetoric - most of the time they argue for CPI and cant even get that.
Little point in racing to the bottom on simple labour costs.
being an owner of a liquor store,i would be able to grow my business 10000 % p/a over 20yrs if i was given a complete tax exception on liquor, i wouldn't mined some of that ,where do i sign up. what rubbish
Sorry Direct Anywhere, but I'm not sure where, in my earlier post, I indicated that I'm in favour of employing anyone but Australians, in Australia.
I was simply posing a question to see if there is some way to get this sort of activity back within Australia, so as to create long-term, value-adding, skilled jobs for Australians. I don't recall mentioning "welcom[ing] short term foreign workers".
So I'm afraid your Gina Rinehart comment has gone a bit over my head.
Another way to interpret my earlier post would be to ask: what effect do Australia's tax rates have on export competitiveness and could such competitiveness be improved by adjustments to tax laws?
Gina Rinehart has been on the record for some time now suggesting that NW Australia should be opened up as a 'special economic zone' with tax exemptions and the ability to bring in workers from SE Asia on contracts that are exempted from the need to comply with Australian labour laws.
The idea of opening up an area of Avalon as you suggested reminded me of her plans. There are certain parallels even though they are clearly not identical.
And the poetry? Apparently somewhere she has stuck a poem on a rock (seriously) which I've quoted (see the link) about her brilliant ideas to establish these SEZs and import low cost labour. The story of the rock has been all over the papers today. Try a google search on Gina Rinehart poetry.
what rubbish
