GENEVA—In a nation of mostly haves and have-mores, Swiss voters head to the polls Sunday to decide on a union proposal that would create a new nationwide minimum wage at 22 Swiss francs ($24.70 U.S.) an hour — the world’s highest.
But the proposal “to protect equitable pay” is only the most prominent of several referendums on the ballot: Others include a controversial plan to buy new Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets for the Swiss Air Force and to impose a lifelong ban against convicted pedophiles working with children.
Most attention is focusing on the push to set a minimum wage at 4,000 francs ($4,500 U.S.) a month for those working a 42-hour week. The Swiss Trade Union Federation has based its proposal on 2010 figures when the median wage was almost 6,000 francs monthly.
The union submitted the referendum in 2012 in keeping with Switzerland’s tradition of direct democracy. Voters in the country who collect 100,000 signatures can force a binding referendum on any issue.
Groups representing Swiss employers are opposed to the plan to create a minimum wage that is more than three times the rate in the United States and more than double Germany’s current proposal for 8.50 euros ($11.64 U.S.) per hour as of 2017. Opponents say it would tinker too much with the economy and hurt businesses by causing production costs to rise.
Switzerland’s seven-member Federal Council of ministers — which has relatively limited power over the 26 cantons (states) — doesn’t support the creation of a minimum wage.
“A legal minimum wage is a bad way to help people with low incomes,” the Council said in a statement. “There would be a high risk that jobs disappear ... It would be a greater help to those affected by providing them with jobs and supporting them with tax breaks and social policy measures.”
Wages have to be high in the Alpine nation to keep up with what some surveys have found to be the world’s highest prices. However, there is now a growing scrutiny over who earns what following criticism of “fat cat” bosses.
There was particular outrage last year at the news that the outgoing chairman of Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG, Daniel Vasella, was to receive a leaving package worth 72 million francs. Vasella later said he would forego his deal.
Unia, a Swiss trade union with over 200,000 members, gathered activists and organizers beneath a statue of an immigrant in Geneva to argue that “the fight against poverty” must include fast-food workers and coffee chains.
Saturday, May 17, 2014
Friday, May 16, 2014
Barca's Messi to be world's highest-paid footballer
MADRID - Barcelona and Lionel Messi have agreed an improved contract that will reportedly make the four-times World Player of the Year soccer's best-paid player with a net annual salary of $27.4 million.
Barca did not publish details of the deal but Spanish media said Messi, 26, would remain tied to the club until June 2018, as in his previous contract, and could earn around 5 million euros more per season in performance-linked bonuses.
The Argentina captain would also regain control of his image rights, one report said, further boosting the income of a man Forbes magazine estimates is the 10th highest-earning athlete, with annual revenues of $41.2 million including wages and endorsements.
"FC Barcelona has reached an agreement to adjust the terms in the contract binding Leo Messi to the club as a professional first team player," Barca said in a brief statement on Friday.
"The revised and updated contract will be signed over the next few days," they added.
Messi, who had been earning a net 13 million euros per season, will top soccer's earnings list ahead of Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo on 18 million euros and Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris St Germain on 14.7 million, sports daily Marca said.
Messi is Barca's all-time leading scorer with 354 goals in 424 official games and news of the deal is a boost for the club before Saturday's La Liga showdown against Atletico Madrid.
"Anything that is good for Messi is good for Barca," coach Gerardo Martino told a news conference on Friday. "It is a very good piece of news for both parties."
Since Messi made his debut in the 2004-05 season, Barca have won 21 titles, including three Champions Leagues and six La Liga crowns.
He joined Barca's academy at the age of 13 after a spell at Newell's Old Boys in his native Rosario.
Messi and his father last year paid 5 million euros to the Spanish authorities as a "corrective payment" after they were accused of filing false tax returns.
The pair, who both denied wrongdoing, allegedly hid more than 4 million euros by filing incomplete returns for the years 2006 to 2009.
The sale of Messi's image rights had been hidden using a complex web of shell companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, the prosecutor's office for tax crimes in Catalonia said.
Barca did not publish details of the deal but Spanish media said Messi, 26, would remain tied to the club until June 2018, as in his previous contract, and could earn around 5 million euros more per season in performance-linked bonuses.
The Argentina captain would also regain control of his image rights, one report said, further boosting the income of a man Forbes magazine estimates is the 10th highest-earning athlete, with annual revenues of $41.2 million including wages and endorsements.
"FC Barcelona has reached an agreement to adjust the terms in the contract binding Leo Messi to the club as a professional first team player," Barca said in a brief statement on Friday.
"The revised and updated contract will be signed over the next few days," they added.
Messi, who had been earning a net 13 million euros per season, will top soccer's earnings list ahead of Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo on 18 million euros and Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris St Germain on 14.7 million, sports daily Marca said.
Messi is Barca's all-time leading scorer with 354 goals in 424 official games and news of the deal is a boost for the club before Saturday's La Liga showdown against Atletico Madrid.
"Anything that is good for Messi is good for Barca," coach Gerardo Martino told a news conference on Friday. "It is a very good piece of news for both parties."
Since Messi made his debut in the 2004-05 season, Barca have won 21 titles, including three Champions Leagues and six La Liga crowns.
He joined Barca's academy at the age of 13 after a spell at Newell's Old Boys in his native Rosario.
Messi and his father last year paid 5 million euros to the Spanish authorities as a "corrective payment" after they were accused of filing false tax returns.
The pair, who both denied wrongdoing, allegedly hid more than 4 million euros by filing incomplete returns for the years 2006 to 2009.
The sale of Messi's image rights had been hidden using a complex web of shell companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, the prosecutor's office for tax crimes in Catalonia said.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
FCC votes to proceed with net rules
US telecom regulators have voted to proceed with a plan that critics say could sound the death knell for net neutrality - the principle that all internet traffic is treated equally. The plan could allow internet service providers (ISPs) to charge a fee for prioritised access to their networks. Critics argue that the new rules could create a two-tiered internet, with a slow lane for those unprepared to pay. The proposals will now be open to public consultation.
The controversial proposals have drawn an unprecedented level of scrutiny to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and its vote, which was passed with three commissioners voting in favour and two against. The meeting of the five commissioners was repeatedly interrupted by protesters, several of whom were removed from the room. Each commissioner gave his or her views on the proposal with both of the Republican commissioners opposing the new rules. All acknowledged that the issue had attracted a huge number of critics and agreed that the rules being discussed would govern the "future of the internet". But those in favour of the proposals pointed out that they were just that - proposals - and said that the vote merely "started an important process" of consultation. Several commissioners rejected the idea that the proposals meant that content providers would have to pay to have their traffic delivered faster. The plan is the brainchild of FCC chairman Tom Wheeler who had had to rethink his open-internet rules following a court case in January, which left them in legal limbo. The court ruled that the FCC did not have the right to prevent ISP Verizon charging a fee for traffic to be carried on its network. Since then both Comcast and Verizon have started charging Netflix to carry its service. The new rules are, according to Mr Wheeler, intended to preserve an open and free internet. He said he understood the issue "in his bones". "The consideration we are looking at today is not about whether the internet should be open but how and when we have rules in place to ensure an open internet," he said. Details of the plan were widely leaked ahead of the vote and there has been mounting opposition from tech firms, consumer groups and venture capitalists, particularly over a proposal that ISPs be allowed to charge fees if they were "commercially reasonable". Thousands of people have written to the FCC in the past few weeks urging it to rethink its plans. As the commissioners voted, a growing group of activists gathered outside the FCC headquarters, with "Save the Internet" banners. Many are campaigning for the FCC to reclassify ISPs as utilities, which would allow greater regulation. The public now has until 15 July to make its opinions known. Mr Wheeler said the FCC would "listen closely" to the views.
The controversial proposals have drawn an unprecedented level of scrutiny to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and its vote, which was passed with three commissioners voting in favour and two against. The meeting of the five commissioners was repeatedly interrupted by protesters, several of whom were removed from the room. Each commissioner gave his or her views on the proposal with both of the Republican commissioners opposing the new rules. All acknowledged that the issue had attracted a huge number of critics and agreed that the rules being discussed would govern the "future of the internet". But those in favour of the proposals pointed out that they were just that - proposals - and said that the vote merely "started an important process" of consultation. Several commissioners rejected the idea that the proposals meant that content providers would have to pay to have their traffic delivered faster. The plan is the brainchild of FCC chairman Tom Wheeler who had had to rethink his open-internet rules following a court case in January, which left them in legal limbo. The court ruled that the FCC did not have the right to prevent ISP Verizon charging a fee for traffic to be carried on its network. Since then both Comcast and Verizon have started charging Netflix to carry its service. The new rules are, according to Mr Wheeler, intended to preserve an open and free internet. He said he understood the issue "in his bones". "The consideration we are looking at today is not about whether the internet should be open but how and when we have rules in place to ensure an open internet," he said. Details of the plan were widely leaked ahead of the vote and there has been mounting opposition from tech firms, consumer groups and venture capitalists, particularly over a proposal that ISPs be allowed to charge fees if they were "commercially reasonable". Thousands of people have written to the FCC in the past few weeks urging it to rethink its plans. As the commissioners voted, a growing group of activists gathered outside the FCC headquarters, with "Save the Internet" banners. Many are campaigning for the FCC to reclassify ISPs as utilities, which would allow greater regulation. The public now has until 15 July to make its opinions known. Mr Wheeler said the FCC would "listen closely" to the views.
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