Ethics

Read an excellent piece by Mike Stuchbery about the connection between a front page Herald Sun story and the subject of the story subsequently being found dead as a result of an overdose.

If the Occupy movement really wants to make progress on economic inequality and social injustice then they should move out of Wall Street, and its equivalent, and engage locally. Shopping locally owned businesses, like your local newsagency, green grocer, butcher, baker and chemist will deliver more of a message here in Australia especially … where Coles and Woolworths control somewhere between 55% and 75% of grocery relates sales. Watch this video from the Hungry Beast team.

Newsagents should seize every opportunity possible to propose a shop local message.

JB HiFi is demonstrating its care, or lack thereof, for Australia by starting a grey import service of goods from overseas.  This service offers products which JB says are the same as what can be purchased from their stores.  The difference is that the products are shipped direct to the consumer from overseas, avoiding GST.

While JB will say that they have to do this to counter overseas websites selling into Australia, my take is that their initiative disrespects Australian taxpayers.  It dodges their obligation to support Australia, to be a good corporate citizen.

The JB HiFi move speaks volumes about ethics and social responsibility.  They are putting their profit goals ahead of the needs of Australia as a country.  they are doing this by pandering to greed – theirs and that of those who will purchase through them.

Yes, I want the federal government to address the tax anomaly.  However, I understand the challenges of achieving this in a cost-justifiable way as a recent Productivity Commission report discussed.

JB HiFi should work harder to address the issue of collecting tax on items purchased overseas and shipped direct to Australian addresses rather than joining others to deny vital tax dollars which fund schools, hospitals, roads and other federally funded infrastructure and initiatives.  Yes, this is a hard road.  Equity can be like that.  Imagine what life would be like if people always took the easy or greed route.

By helping, and even encouraging, Australian consumers to avoid paying tax JB HiFi disrespects us.

The decision by Qantas yesterday to ground its entire felt as its next move in an industrial dispute with several unions is appalling.  In a week when shareholders delivered a 66% pay rise to their CEO, the CEO and Qantas board have decided to disrupt and financially harm tens of thousands of businesses and hundreds of thousands of passengers instead of showing leadership by working through the dispute.

I don’t care for the excuses of Alan Joyce.  There is no excuse for disrupting business in this way, none whatsoever.

Joyce announced the grounding late on Saturday.  How are businesses supposed to respond overt the weekend to make over arrangements for Monday?  My newsagency software company usually has between six and ten people on return flights every week, myself included.  Our small business has been significantly disrupted.  We have extra costs.  Thanks Qantas.  Alan Joyce has his 66% and the bully boys of the board think they are making their point.  Makes me feel like they don’t care.

In my view, the point Qantas is making is we don’t like the game so we are taking everything and going home.  This is the sort of behaviour parents hope their kids grow out of.

The Qantas boards should grow up.  They should have realised the damage of giving their CEO 66% while refusing a fraction of this to others would create difficulties.

I have many clients and friends in the tourism industry.  They are gutted by this move.  Travellers due to arrive this week will not arrive.  These business are still recovering from the impact of cyclones and a tough economy.

Why Qantas would wreak a man-made tsunami on business, especially small business and the tourism sector, is beyond me.  Sure, they will say they are doing this for the good of the airline, to protect shareholder value.  I don’t believe that line.

I have no doubt that the unions lodged ambit claims.  They usually do.  Negotiations need to be approached with this knowledge.  That said, as a frequent flyer I want the people flying the plane to be happy and well paid as my safety depends on it.

My travel plans this week are disrupted and while I have been able to make arrangements with Virgin for two flights, I have two more flights which are proving to be a challenge to resolve.  The time spent already has a cost which I am sure Qantas will not are about.

Besides the disruption and cost to passengers and business, there is the damage to brand Australia.  My sense is that it will be considerable.

The Qantas action certainly leaves me wondering where this move fits in their longer term plans for the airline.  I also wonder if there is a political motive.

As a Qantas Platinum level frequent flyer I am appalled at the decision by Qantas.  I do not support it at all.

I notice that Alan Joyce has been in the media today with all manner of excuses including that they chose to ground the fleet yesterday, and not another day, for safety reasons.  Nonsense.

I’ll close with a quote from Ita Buttrose.  This is what she tweeted on twitter yesterday:

Leaders lead by example; Alan Joyce should have said no to a pay rise this week. Very disappointed in the Qantas board and its chairman.

Please excuse me for being off topic with this post.

Newsagents who receive unsolicited emails can complain to ACMA about such SPAM.  Under the Spam Act 2003,

it is illegal to send, or cause to be sent, unsolicited commercial electronic messages. The Act covers email, instant messaging, SMS and MMS (text and image-based mobile phone messaging) of a commercial nature.

Lodging a complaint about SPAM email is the best way to complain about your business email address being obtained and used for unsolicited emails.  Click here to go to the ACMA page for lodging a complaint.

The other thing I’d suggest newsagents do is emailing the spammer and letting them know that you are complaining to ACMA.

The Coles school sports promotion is a rip-off in my view.  According to a recent report in The Australian (Sept. 5 pg 8), shoppers need to spend $700 to earn enough points for a school to get a $3 (RRP) skipping rope.

I’d have parents from a nearby school spending less than $500 in one of my newsagencies in a year yet I happily give them products worth $50 for free when they ask.  This makes my small newsagency more valuable to the school than Coles.  Plus I don’t demand they shop with me.  I want that to occur naturally as it is more likely to stick if it does.

Indeed in each of my newsagencies we give a significantly higher percentage of revenue to community groups than Coles appears to with this promotion.

Why should I be surprised that small businesses do more for local schools and clubs than one of our giant supermarkets?  I’m not.  I think that the Coles campaign in purely profit driven and 100% cynical.  It sucks that shoppers buy in and think good on your Coles for doing this.

I don’t spend any money advertising the $50 I give the school either.  It frustrates me the tens and maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars is being spent advertising the promotion.  This should be given to the schools and not media outlets.  Coles should rely on word of mouth – if they were serious about helping as much as possible.