Rate rise looms; work-life balance; checkout habits

0:00A rate rise next week is looking increasingly likely after the latest inflation figures were released on Tuesday. High fuel prices, as a result of the war, were responsible for much of the increase, with some leading experts suggesting that rate hikes are no longer the right tool to try and fix inflation in an ongoing cost of living crisis. Joining us this afternoon on the debrief is Nick Hayes from MediaStablin, Adelaide and Rosie Walton from Triple M's, Mick and the Morning Show in Melbourne. Good afternoon to both of you. Nick, I'm going to start with you here. We've had a lot of experts coming out and saying that maybe the cash rate, considering just over 30% of Australians now, hold a mortgage, is not the right way to try and tackle inflation. What are your thoughts on this? I think they're spot on. I think the Reserve Bank seems to only have one trigger, one tool that they can actually use to solve this issue of inflation.

1:00All they're really going to do is just take dollars away from spends, from mums and dads and people that own houses to just to live. And at a moment, it's a cost of living crisis, we're not exactly living our best lives. So it's just to live is what we're after. I think the Reserve Bank's decision, if they decide to do it, it's a crazy one and it's not the way it's going to fix. We need to find better ways to do it. Rosie, what are your thoughts on this? Because it was really effective many years ago when everyone had a mortgage, but so many people just can't even afford to buy a property today. No, I'm a lifelong renter and it scares me. I feel like I'm not going to get that hit straight away that will come down later in the track, but you just not spending as much money out and about. So you've got businesses that need to put up prices of coffee or just general goods. We can't go out as much as we used to and it's a vicious cycle and it's not fair. Yeah, and it also doesn't tackle inflation as we're often seeing. Moving on this afternoon, you research has revealed that three and five Australian workers are willing to take a pay cut in exchange for a better work-life balance.

2:03But economists are sounding the alarm declaring reducing your salary may not be great for your mental health. Would it get the balance right here, Nick? All right, I'd love to get the balance right. If someone can work this out, they're going to be the best employer and the best place to work at. I think people are slightly living in La La land if they think that having less time at work or cutting back to work on yourself and expecting the salaries or even weight wages to be at the same, I think they're kidding themselves. So stick with it, find other ways to do it, but it's just not the solution. You've got to find another way to look after yourself while still making a good salary. Where is the, I think, a majority of Australians right now haven't got the time to think about a work-life balance because they're struggling to try and make ends meet? Absolutely. It's so important to not be burnt out, but everybody is getting more burnt out as the years go on and all these hikes are going up, things are more expensive, you have to spend more

3:03time at work, but you really need to do take time for yourself because you will get sick in the end and that just puts the cost further and further down the track. So you need to look after yourself, I don't know on who's time or when you find that time, but even if it's something like sitting in a park in the sun for five minutes, just find something for yourself. And especially if you do get sick, you cannot actually work nor get any time. Finally this afternoon, this is a very controversial topic I never knew about this hack, but a supermarket trick has divided many shoppers with some people snapping the stalk of a broccoli before weighing it at the checkout to save money. Two questions for both of you, Nick, did you know about this and do you do it? Yes and no, yes and no from me. I did know about this and I don't do it because it's all a weight thing, isn't it, when you're putting it in? But I've been raised, I've been told by one of my colleagues John Solvanda that you can eat the stalk as well. You can. So it's all there for you, but a lot of people obviously choose not to do it, but it's

4:06a little, isn't it a little bit tight of people doing that, cutting it off before they hit the registers? I think that's a bit thrifty there. Rosie, your thoughts on this, I've also heard apparently cauliflower, you can take the leaves off to actually decrease the price, that's what I'm alleging. Yeah, they're very weighty as well, but you know, I mean the broccoli stalks are so hard. You'd have to buy a knife that you'd need scissors to cut the thing open for to actually cut it off as well. So I don't know how people are doing it, they've got more strength than me, maybe they're eating more broccoli, maybe the supermarket's need a grant to turn it into biofuel or something, they cut it off, they get the money, we get cheaper broccoli, maybe it's a good circle of life thing for cause you live. Yeah, it's win-win for everyone. You actually can use the stalk especially for stir fries, that's too much information for a Friday, but we appreciate you joining us, Nick and Rosie. We'll still apparently. Exactly. Have a beautiful weekend. Thanks for joining us. Thanks, Josh.