Their accountants and lawyers have done their annual magic. They have massaged the numbers, whisked away a gazillion or more dollars to the Cayman Islands, or some other tax haven and — oh, what a miracle — they have managed to reduce their taxable income to zero (or better still, into the offset bliss of notional “losses”).
And all this while they sit by the pool, sipping only-the-best champers.
What a life — for some.
Chances are you are just groaning about tax return time again and wondering whether your boss will even bother to send you a group certificate. And that is if you are lucky enough to have a job, a permanent, full-time job with all the basic benefits such as sick leave, annual leave and long service leave.
Since 2017, according to research published by the Australia Institute, less than half of all workers in Australia still have a “standard job” like this.
If you are one of the workers who has been forced to become a so-called "independent contractor", the end of the financial year is probably time for a migraine.
But if you are lucky enough to score a tax refund, then we just want to say "Please remember Green Left Weekly". Twenty-First century capitalism sucks big time but by putting some of that tax refund into building the movement to change the system, you become part of the solution.
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