A Canadian expat has taken to TikTok, shocked after discovering Australia’s minimum wage.
The Canadian who posted the video under the TikTok account ‘Snippet Lads’, said that he knew when he was moving Down Under that the minimum wage was high, but didn’t realise how high.
“Right now I’m looking for work, and I went into a retail place, and I was asking how much they get paid,” he said in a now-viral TikTok, viewed almost 330,000 times.
“For their casual work, they get paid $31 an hour. That’s insane. To compare, in Canadian dollars that’s $28 or, in US dollars, it’s $21 an hour.”
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“So imagine working at Walmart and making $28 an hour in Canadian [dollars],” he added.
According to the Fairwork Ombudsman, the minimum wage in Australia is $23.23 per hour, whereas in Canada, the minimum wage is $16.65 (AUD $18.78), as per Jobillico.
“It’s absolutely crazy out here how much they pay people for labour,” he added.
“The whole work around casual and stuff is insane.”
In a follow-up video, the content creator explained the significant pay gap between the two countries.
“They have a huge labour shortage here in Australia so everyone’s working for $28 an hour to $29,” he said.
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“In some places, if you have experience, [pay] can be $31 to $33 an hour.
“It’s crazy how much you can get if you have experience like as a barista, say.
“Back in Canada, if you’re a barista and you have experience you’d maybe be getting $16 to $17 an hour.
“Whereas here if you’re an experienced barista and you’re good at your job, you can command $30 to $31 an hour which is absolutely crazy.”
But again, with the labour shortage and the ongoing cost of living crisis, many Aussies quickly pointed out this isn’t reflected in their salary.
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One wrote: “Yes but, our cost of living in Australia is significantly high!!”
Another said: “Don't forget if you work more than one job your other jobs are taxed at a much higher rate, usually 50 per cent.”
While a third joked: “Any Australian that has tasted Canadian coffee would say your baristas are getting paid to much.”
Charisa Bossinakis