I'm proposing a flat tax system where all income is treated equally. I thought my position was pretty clear.
That's when it is their responsibility to know this before they get into business and charge properly. Pass the cost on to the consumer. I would believe if the tax rates were not what they were, a person would not be able to charge what they charge. It isn't like you would then get to keep all that green. It should just be factored as a cost of doing business. At least that is how I would try to look at it.
Different conversation, but the Nordic system can be (and has been) very successful. The problem is it depends on a populace 'buying in' and fulfilling their role within the system. The system depends on and embraces capitalism, but able bodied citizens must seek and maintain employment. Folks in the Nordic countries largely did just that, however the system began showing cracks when folks started immigrating in to enjoy the benefits without supporting the system via employment. It's a system requiring balance and immigration can create imbalance. I have several Nordic colleagues who do quite well even with the high taxation. A big part of that is because they do not have separate expenses for education, healthcare, etc. It only works if the majority buy in, though. So definitely not viable here any time soon.
It definitely requires a change of thought by the populace. I just am not sure America will ever be in that place.
I know very little about Nordic tax systems (other than my research on previous pages), but everyone buying in AND it being ran effectively/efficiently are two major reasons why I could never see it working here. If someone could prove to me it would work, I'd at minimum consider it. I'm just not sure it ever could here.
I don't understand the disconnect. I have a job and an hourly rate. I multiply my hourly rate by 2080 hours for a yearly income. That's my base pay, I calculate my tax rate based on me working for a full year. I then, over the course of the year, work overtime due to deadlines, needs, opportunities whatever. At the end of the year I also add that amount up. I get pissed that the extra time I worked is less profitable (to me) than the regular time I worked. I completely disagree with it. It's not that my initial salary is 1.25 times or 1.5 times what it is, it's that I worked an additional 25%/50%/whatever and got to take home less money per hour for doing that extra work.
I know I'm duplicating responses, but I agree with you. I find the system fascinating, especially when in balance, but don't ever see it working here.
They ever talk about abuse of the system there? Edit, I meant less about people imitating in to abuse the system.
Not the folks I know, but I'm sure there is a level of non-immigrant abuse which bothers folks. They have spoken about some of the issues with immigration, though. It's not about being anti-immigrant for them, it's anti-laziness or unwillingness to educate/train themselves for participation in the workforce.
You also get more social security and medicare taken out when you work more overtime. That 300 hours of overtime, which conveniently bumps your tax rate up, which means they keep more of the withholding amount, which means you worked more hours for damn near the same amount of money, in your pocket, than if you had worked 130 hours of overtime. Hypothetically, of course.
You're saying more money in the form of SS, medicare, and tax increase in the new bracket negates what you earn? I.e. 100% of the overtime pay is consumed so you may as well not worked? How could that be? Or are you saying that you just end up getting paid at your regular rate? which again, seems hard to believe.
If you pass a certain threshold of overtime hours weekly, which where I used to work was right at 16 or so hours of overtime, after deductions, I was bringing home less than my hourly wage on those overtime hours. That makes working as much as you can pointless.
You made more money that particular week because you worked 20 hours of overtime. The next week you may only work 11 hours of overtime.
I'm saying, per week, it becomes pointless to work more than 16 hours of overtime because after that, you start making less than your base pay. At the end of the year, if you're fortunate enough to make X amount of dollars, you don't see any of your hard earned overtime tax dollars come back via return because you've worked yourself just into a higher bracket. It's a fantastic system.
I'm not following, and I am not trying to be difficult. I've had a lot of jobs and a few with overtime opportunities that paid time and a half. I am unaware of how getting paid time and a half could ever be deducted down to less than your base amount, unless you are calculating this at the end of the year and counting all your withholdings against the overtime.
More fun tax stuff - https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyp...tax-evasion-on-this-day-in-1931/#225b52e47c4c
Working for other people then going out on your own will open your eyes to a lot of things tax related.
