00:02We're stuck, essentially. A series of settings and changes in society and the way we live
00:07and work have contributed to a situation where we're not as mobile as we used to be. We
00:12lack economic dynamism. The easiest way to look at this is our indicator for job mobility.
00:18So back in 1989, which was probably a banner year where the economy was firing, one in
00:23five of us changed jobs just in that year. At the moment, that rate is down to one in
00:2913. Our level of job mobility is at multi-decade lows. We are starting fewer small businesses.
00:36We have less self-employment. The rates of that, the rates of being a sole trader, just
00:41keep falling compared to how they have. And even our rate of interstate moves has been
00:48falling. Fewer, sorry, as a percentage, fewer Australians are moving between states this
00:53year. There's a lot of reasons for this. There's a lot of reasons to unpack it. But what
00:58the impact is, is that people don't switch jobs. They don't earn more money by getting
01:03new opportunities. And they're starting less and fewer dynamic new businesses that would
01:10probably help fire up the economy.
01:11OK, well, let's go through some of the reasons why. What have you seen?
01:16Well, one of the key ones is housing. As the cost of housing has decoupled from wages and
01:22from other kinds of growth, it's become harder to move. So you have things like stamp duty, which
01:27is literally a transaction cost. So if you get a job on the other side of your 100-kilometre
01:31wide city, or if you get an opportunity in another state, you're less likely to take
01:35it up because of the costs involved. Similarly, as a society we've changed, there are more and
01:40more two-income families. That's due to women taking a much greater role in the workplace.
01:45It's a fantastic thing. But it does mean when opportunities arise, you're no longer looking
01:50at packing the family in the car and moving for one job. You're going to have to have a much
01:54more complex and dynamic chat about finding a different job for your partner as well.
01:59One of the big shifts that's happened over time is an increasing amount of regulation
02:04on small business, but also an increase on benefits paid to what are called wage employees.
02:10So people who earn income, people who earn a wage. Over time, the benefits and the national
02:15employment standards and others, things like superannuation, parental leave, have increased.
02:20I spoke to E61 Institute research economist Rachel Lee about that factor.
02:26Our research has shown that traditional employment has became more attractive and secure over time.
02:34So with the expansion of things like superannuation and paid parental leave, the benefits of being
02:42a wage employee has increased. At the same time, we know that self-employment is
02:49a risky venture. And so some people might be more looking for something that's more secure
02:56in terms of working for someone else.
02:59Rachel Lee from the E61 Institute. So talking about how the benefits that have accrued to
03:05wage earners have gone up, making self-employment more risky and look less like a good option.
03:11So Dan, where to from here? Do opportunities exist?
03:14They do. There's actually quite a bit announced in the federal budget. Most of it swamped by
03:18housing and tax chat, although some of those factors do play into it. Some of the really
03:23small things that were probably less noted in the budget were things like cutting the cost
03:28from $1,600 to zero.
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