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# Support for Minimum Wage from Subsidised ‘Business Owner’
- URL: https://goodoil.news/support-for-minimum-wage-from-subsidised-business-owner/
- Published: 2020-01-16T19:30:00.000Z
- Updated: 2020-01-17T20:49:50.000Z
- Author: Guest Post
- Tags: Business, Featured, NZ, NZ Politics, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2024-07-17 03:24

**Straight arrow**

Yesterday I came across a New Zealand “business owner” who tweeted support for the increase in the **minimum wage** and declared that they are already paying their employees a ” living wage.”

> Frustrated yesterday by ACTs tweet today saying that the raising of the minimum wage is detrimental to businesses. I firmly believe that if you can’t afford to pay your staff enough to live then you shouldn’t be employing staff. I’ve paid a living wage since my business began.  
>  
> Twitter

Let’s look at her “business”:

1. She teaches swimming using the local school’s pool.
2. The pool and changing facilities received a massive upgrade with most building materials and labour was provided **free** by Bunnings and another company.
3. The local council and Community Trust provided a “significant” amount of the funding.
4. Members of a Waterpolo club **volunteered** time as well.

First: Great community spirit, and well done to all involved. Seems like a nice bunch of people

My point is that it is not a real stand-alone business, it is, in reality, an NGO run as a business.  
Normal (and most by far) businesses:

- Do not have access to facilities provided at below actual real cost (long term) (no capital cost etc)
- Do not have access to free start-up funding
- Do not have access to free labour
- Have barriers to entry to industry: need a pool for starters
- Do not have nil international competition
- Do not have a lack of local neighbourhood competition…which relates to needing a pool
- Do not have competition that is reducing (ie the schools themselves are closing/not using pools)

I also suspect that there is no capital gain for the business, as facilities (ie the major assets) are owned by the school/community.

Compare this so-called business with a coffee shop, a restaurant a bar or a clothing shop.

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