The Country 22/09/25: Pita Alexander talks to Jamie Mackay

We catch up with a globe-trotting Christchurch farm accountant and raconteur who looks at the true cost of farm wages in 2026 and he asks whether our politicians are worth their pay?

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Here's a globe trotting christ Church farm accountant and rack
on to Peter Alexander Always Lovers contribution to the show. Peter,
you've put together a really interesting paper and we're going
to put this up on our website, The Country dot
co dot nz. And it's around the true cost of
farm wages in twenty twenty six. Now you've used a

(00:21):
farming couple who discussed a situation with you, and you've
used their numbers. I think they're a Canterbury farming couple
and the bottom line is the farm workers in this case,
when we take everything into consideration, are getting paid sixty
bucks an hour. That's not a bad wicket.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Now, you're quite right. This couple spent some time with me.
It's sheep and beef operation, but the concept applies and
almost all farming situations. And they agreed on a salary
for the headshperd of thirty seven dollars an hour. But
when they discussed it with me all the other things
they have agreed to which are all reasonable, it comes

(01:02):
out of just on sixty dollars of there just under it,
and they were very surprised, but they didn't argue with
any of the data, because I have shown them this
data before I've gone into print, and they have said, no,
this is exactly what we have agreed to. And it's
at thirty seven dollars an hour. That was about a
he's had five years, four years experience. He's very experienced,

(01:26):
but he's not yet a manager. And so I said,
are you happy if I print? And they said, yes,
we are happy if you printed.

Speaker 1 (01:34):
See I'll just run. I'm not going to run through
the numbers because it doesn't translate well on radio. But
we've got the gross salary. We add to that the
acc levy costs, isolation allowance, reowning and vehicle, a house
supply this is a big one. A free house. You
got a dog allowance and protective clothing allowance. Can we
save a contribution cell phone and electricity contribution and a

(01:56):
mutton allowance, a bit a bit of meat and maybe
some there. And to my point, and I reckon that
some of some people who maybe even listening to this,
who were struggling in the cities with high rents and
low wages or wages that are stagnant, you could do
a whole lot worse than go down live on a farm.

(02:16):
Work on a farm, your kids go to a nice local,
little primary school, you get to live the good life,
and I reckon you'd make a lot more money.

Speaker 2 (02:24):
Yes, it's interesting that if this arrangement with these two
stayed long term, that have to increase the key we
save allowance that if they stayed long term. At sixty five,
this couple are in a quite a sound position, and
they'll be just as about a sound as the owner.

(02:45):
And the owners were very surprised with this data.

Speaker 1 (02:49):
I'm sure they wouldn't. It reminds me of being a
young farmer in the eighties borrowed a whole lot of
money and freezing workers were making more than farmers. And
I'm not udging freezing workers their wages, but the farmers
had a whole lot of money invested or borrowed behind
their farming operation. There's got to be something in it

(03:09):
for the business owner to run the business. Hey, just
a couple of other things I want to touch on
with you while i've got you topic azure at the moment?
Is this alliance group dawn meat steal? It's a bit
of a Hobson's choice steal, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (03:25):
Yes, it is. I don't think there's any choice at
all at the moment. Alliance very much need this approach
and looks genuine. It won't be a cooperative anymore, but
it's still real progress for them.

Speaker 1 (03:43):
Hey, in a final comment from you, and I couldn't
agree with you more. Not many of New Zealand's MPs,
and how many we got one hundred and twenty three
of them with the overhang would be worth one hundred
and seventy three thy four hundred. That must be the
base salary I'm assuming. And the private sector, I mean,
think of one who resigned last week who would never
get that if he or she or they went out

(04:06):
into the real world.

Speaker 2 (04:07):
No, that's quite right. Your figure one hundred and seventy
three four hundred is ejected to figure right now. That's
for the ordinary MP. I honestly don't think more than
ten percent, maybe fifteen percent would get that out in
the private sector.

Speaker 1 (04:23):
I think we're talking about the allowances available for the
farm workers. Maybe the farm workers are being hard done
by because that total package, by the way, for the
farm worker came to one hundred and eight thousand. Your
one hundred and seventy three thousand, four hundred. I don't
think includes the allowances either, so goodness knows what we're
paying some of these half sucked tubes to do the job.

(04:44):
I don't mind the ones who get elected, but the
list MPs nah, they're not worth it, the backbench ones.

Speaker 2 (04:50):
You're quite right that based salary one seventy three thy
four hundred is just the ordinary salary. There's a whole
swag of allowances that I haven't got access to that
but in every MP would be a little bit different,
but it could easily be another twenty thousand of allowances easily.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
Good on you, Peter Alexander, thanks for some of your
time today on the Country. We'll put your really good
paper up on the Country, The True Cost of Farm
Wages in twenty twenty six. It may encourage some people
who read it to maybe go and live on a
farm and work on one.

Speaker 2 (05:23):
See you later, okay, Bright Jamie