‘ DOUGLAS COLLEGE LIBRARY
Pet tens ; ARCHIVES

The Editor:

 

The thought of a strike is no less repugnant to me than to Wilf Deeth,
your correspondent of last week, who, proclaiming ''to have no idea what
is happening'' immediately proceeded to prove it. Now | am not holding
that against him: as a mathematician | have to give credit for that sort
‘ of thing; however | must take exception to his observation that ''a
uniform percentage increase ... widens the gap''. Although true in the
accountant's eye (wherein a dollar is a dollar) it is nevertheless false
if one considers relative rather than absolute incomes since increasing
marginal taxation = that splendid device that contributes so much to
the theory of stable economic equilibrium - creates a not inconsiderable
disparity in after tax incomes;

 

gross income net income % increase

before increase with 10% increase before increase after after tax
$10000. 11000. 8990. ayOe 8.1
20000. 22000. 15700. 16900. 76

; A uniform, absolute increase, which Wilf advocates, results in a considerable
disparity as evidenced by the following based on last year's increase*:

 

gross income net income increase

before increase after increase before increase after after tax

$12000. 15000. 10480. 12470. 1990. (19%)
21000. 24000. 16310. 18050. 1740. (10.7%)

( the average hourly-wage in BC rose 18-19% between June 74 and June 75 )

Concerning Wilf's remarks on an 8% increase, an inspection of the current
Collective Agreements reveals that the lowest salary paid at the present

« time is in excess of $9000 ; so $500. would represent an increase of at most
54% (before taxes). Oh, and incidentally, that $9000 figure includes an
11% increase effective April 1 of this year.

If any one is still left after all those bewildering data (math. is so boring)
here is what | propose.

First, if the education system of this Province is ever to amount to much,
the people of this Great-Province-0f-Ours must be made to realize that education,
as any other good, costs money (and if the system fails to teach that it has

@ truly failed). We must make this Great POO aware that the funds it currently
allocates are inadequate to meet its educational expectations and that if
adequate funding is not forthcoming then at least one of two things will happen:
programmes will be curtailed or quality will fall because - unpopular writer
in the Vancouver Sun notwithstanding - lower dollar salaries elsewhere are
higher:in buying power, and mobility is directly proportional to ability.

 

Second, we must ask for the money. College employees, working in an Incredibly 8)

‘
*example calculations are based on the 1975 tax table, ignoring CPP and

Unemployment taxes, and assuming $5000. deductions. kite