Original article by Jamie McIntyre published in 21st Century News.

How can Australians feel wealthier instantly? There is a simple way to do that by cutting the cost of child care, age care and disability whilst increasing the participation rate of women at work to boost the Australian economy.

I was in Bali a few weeks ago holidaying, like many Australians do, when I asked one of my friends who just moved there, how much he pays for his Balinese nanny.

It worked out to be $1.50 per day.

I am thinking what a difference that is compared to what we pay for similar services in Australia.

This also explains why so many Australians are now living in Bali whilst on Australian incomes i.e. many retirees and also many fly in fly out miners from WA.

With such low Balinese living expenses these Australians are even richer, yet they haven’t even increased their wealth or income to achieve this massive and instant increase in standard of living. They have achieved it by simply accessing a lower cost of living.

This got me thinking about how to solve some of the extremely high cost of living pressures in Australia that many Australians are suffering under.

You see Australians by world standards are actually rich but often don’t feel rich as it costs a lot to live in Australia (I would largely blame the unions for creating this wage inflationary pressures that are unsustainable and actually decrease the buying power of many and drive high property prices).

It costs approximately $30 an hour to hire a housekeeper in Australia, which is more than some middle managers in America earn.

In America such services cost approximately $8-$10 per hour.

So here is a controversial yet common-sense solution to make Australians instantly richer, solve expensive child care and age care costs and increase the workforce participation rate especially for women who would be able to return to work if they chose to, which also helps boost our economy further.

The Australian Government should issue a special visa for immigrants who would like to migrate to Australia to work in roles such as housekeeping, in-house chef, nanny, in-home age care/disability care, domestic duties, personal assistants etc.

The visa conditions would require the Australian sponsor to provide food and lodging for the individual in return for a lower wage of say $8-$10 per hour.

Now before Union leaders spit out their breakfast in a flying rage, maybe they should consider how this is a win-win for all and perhaps go back to their breakfast and stop interfering in the progress of a great nation.

If someone is paying your rent, i.e. by allowing the domestic help to live in-house in a spare room plus providing food, then is $8-$10 an hour on top of these other benefits more than reasonable?

There would be a mile long queue wanting to move here right now for such a role, so let’s take that as a yes.

Would it give many a new exciting life by migrating to Australia?

That would be a yes too.

Would it increase the female participation rate, especially since many mothers would be able to afford to go back to work?

At present most of their income goes to childcare, so if they do go back to work they are basically working to pay for expensive child care, which is frustrating and reducing the number of women who would like to be at work.

Would it help solve our aged care and disability care high cost issues?

Yes again and this is a huge issue for the future that we must address.

And how many carers would love the extra support this could provide and perhaps also give them a break from the challenging task of looking after their loved ones?

Could it be extended to allowing in more needed medical professionals in rural areas where even the Government could provide free accommodation at a low cost for much needed services?

Would it give every Australian household that decided to sponsor such a visa applicant a much better quality of life and a better return on the larger incomes Australians earn?

Totally, as Australians would be able to delegate many tasks and enjoy a better quality life without needing to earn anymore.

Now, there will always be critics who find a problem with every solution; but I would rather consider those who offer solutions to every problem as more credible.

This can be an innovative way to create a win-win situation to improve the lives of new migrants on these special visas. It would also improve the standard of living for countless Australians and boost our economy, well-being and wealth.

Share your thoughts?

Jamie McIntyre is the Founder of 21st Century Australia Party and the CEO of the 21st Century Education Group of Companies. He is also a major shareholder in 21st Century Media, a Publicly Unlisted Company that owns assets including 21st Century News. www.jamiemcintyre.com

Jamie McIntyre is the Founder of 21st Century Australia Party and the CEO of the 21st Century Education Group of Companies. He is also a major shareholder in 21st Century Media, a Publicly Unlisted Company that owns assets including 21st Century News. http://www.jamiemcintyre.com

Author Bio: Jamie McIntyre is the Founder of 21st Century Australia Party and the CEO of the 21st Century Education Group of Companies. He is also a major shareholder in 21st Century Media, a Publicly Unlisted Company that owns assets including 21st Century News. www.jamiemcintyre.com

Category: Politics
Keywords: age care, child care, cutting costs, housekeeper, Jamie McIntyre, minimum wage, slave labour