A young mum has sparked a heated debate about wage growth after she revealed that she wasn’t ‘doing anything’ for $60,000 a year.
Financial influencer Alice Raspin, 28, declared that wages which don’t match inflation are ‘out’ in 2025 and urged others to reevaluate their value.
Data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics found in the year to June 2024, the Consumer Price Index rose by 3.8 per cent and the Wage Price Index rose by 4.1 per cent, meaning real wage growth was only 0.3 per cent.
Many Aussies have struggled to stay afloat amid the cost of living crisis with Ms Raspin saying the once average wage is no longer sustainable.
‘Sorry, but I’m not doing anything for $60,000 a year,’ she said in a TikTok video posted on Monday.
‘As a 28-year-old living in a capital city with one child, I have rent and we’re saving for a home.
‘How do people expect to compensate someone 75 hours a fortnight for $60,000?
‘What bills am I paying with that?’
Financial influencer Alice Raspin (pictured) urged her followers to re-evaluate their wages in 2025
Data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics found in the year to June 2024, real wage growth sat at 0.3 per cent
Ms Raspin added that any company offering a $60,000 full-time job in 2025 is ‘dreaming’.
‘I don’t care how much you make, if it’s less than $60,000 a year, get a new job,’ she said.
She admitted within the comments that she has no tertiary qualifications but had been working full-time for the last 10 years.
Ms Raspin told Daily Mail Australia that while a five-figure salary could work for younger people with less commitments, she, like many others, cannot afford to be paid less.
‘I think $65,000 is suitable if you live with mates or at home and don’t have kids while you’re saving to buy a house or travel,’ she said.
‘But when you’re 28, have a child and you’re living out of home – nothing under $70,000 is going to cut it.’
Many viewers agreed that $60,000 isn’t enough to live on in a major city.
‘I’m so over wages not matching the cost of living crisis,’ one wrote.
Another added: ‘I just declined a government position for $50,000.’
A third wrote: ‘I don’t get out of bed for anything less than $100,000 a year.
Another added: ‘$125,000 is the new $65,000.’
A viewer earning $60,000 a year revealed they struggled to make ends meet and were left with just $100 spare each fortnight.
Ms Raspin (pictured) said that while $60,000 is suitable for some Aussies, it’s unsustainable for families in cities
However, some viewers disagreed with Ms Raspin.
‘If you need work you’ll take what you can get until a better opportunity arises,’ one commented.
Another added: ‘We’ve all started somewhere – most tradies start their career on 30K a year’.
A third wrote: ‘Kids these days have absolute no idea.’
Others said it depended on the job, qualifications and experience.
