Government Will Tax Crocodiles ...............

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If it was not scared of them. The government has no sense of humor. It taxes comedians, people who give us a much-needed laugh so that we can forget life, which is basically problems. It doesn’t see humor. It has a one-track mind. It sees an in-and-out situation. It only cares about the definition of the word, in-come. Netflix or comedy channels pay comedians, the government siphons some money out. It’s called taxes.

It’s not a nice word. That is why it is not discussed up-front. It’s like washing the dishes after a successful dinner party. The well-laid table brimming with food was the seduction and nobody told the guests they will do the dishes. Salary negotiations. Taxes are not discussed. The talking point is the salary package and pizza toppings like the company car, house, health insurance or stocks and bonds, if you live high on the hog.

Money has a BEFORE and AFTER. Period. That is why hiding it from the government is called doing laundry. Salary and contract negotiations should start with ‘before tax.’ This helps people around the table to make informed decisions about the actual take-home pot of money. We all have stories about the first pay check. Cheeks fell flat and we rushed to Human Resources. The manager tried to explain all the deductions from the salary, but we were too shocked to take it all in.

Not only salaries, but contracts as well. By contracts I don’t mean Nigeria selling a million barrels of crude oil to Germany. I mean small contracts where you supply the local hospital with fruit and vegetables. How much is the contract AFTER TAX? Unfortunately, most cases end up in court because certain things are not deemed important enough to be thrashed out, at the negotiation table. Taxes are.

Nonqaba waka Msimang

Blogger Without Borders

 

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