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Australia granted leave pass to party like Shane Warne, not the 'creepy' Kardashians

All the news that's fit to mint.

Jenna ClarkeEditorial Director
7 min read
2:48PMDecember 26, 2022.
Updated 11:54AMDecember 27, 2022
The Oz
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All the news that's fit to mint.

What's happening in (The) Oz:

😭 The Shane Warne tributes at the Boxing Day Test caused dehydration 

🎒 Tourism bosses demand more visa options for Boomers so nanna can enjoy the spoils of hostels

🇦🇫 The Taliban bans female charity workers from working in Afghanistan

🎁 Government warns us to not be a d🍆ck to retail workers ever, but especially this week

🤑 We managed to find a spare $23.5 billion under our cushions and mattresses on Christmas Day

🧀 The Grinch gets his revenge, Coles recalls cheese 

🐣 Don't worry we'll eat Hot Cross Buns instead

👿 The Kardashians celebrate Christmas like sleep demons

Welcome to... I have no idea what day it is...

All I know is that I'm at least 67% ham and strawberries right now.

I think it's Tuesday.

Welcome to Boxing Day's boxing day.

According to the Australian Retailers Association we went full Harry and Meghan on Monday with our credit cards during the Boxing Day sale specials which have flooded our inboxes and shopping centres.

“The way I am positioning it now is it is ‘freedom spending’, it is the first Christmas in three years that people could get together with family and friends and then this is the first summer where people can get to family and friends," ARA boss Paul Zahra said.

The official post Christmas sales have started and are set to last until mid January, which are predicted to add an extra $23.5 billion to cash registers. 

But, there's a big "but".

“There's no doubt that the rising cost of living and the rising cost of doing business will collide at some point this year. According to some that is more than likely to be around the middle of the year as opposed to be earlier than we originally thought,” Zahra said.

“So it is definitely looking like a very strong January … but it will definitely hit us at some point and retailers are planning to batten down the hatches – but at which point does that hit? And it will be more likely the ‘winter of discontent’.

“At some point in winter we think, and retailers are planning for that and certainly a slowdown is imminent but at which point does that happen and it is more likely to be in winter.”

But for now let's party like Warnie in the 1990s

The Boxing Day Test got underway at the MCG on Monday and day one was all about the Aussies (they're playing South Africa for the next few days).

READ MORE: A guided meditation for your three naps - also known as the Boxing Day Test - starts now

The late Shane Warne was remembered many times.

Including with the Australian team swapping out their baggy greens for Warnie's preferred white floppy hat.

And then at 3.50pm the 70,000 strong crowd started chanting "Warnie" as a mark of respect for our 350th Test player.

It was announced before play got underway on Monday that Cricket Australia has changed the award for Australia's best male test cricketer, and it will officially be known as the Shane Warne Men's Test Player of the Year Award.

It will be presented for the first time at the upcoming Allan Border Medal.

Cameron Green and home town hero, Scott Boland stunned.

Days after landing one of the richest contracts in IPL history, Perth lad Cameron Green showed why he sparked a bidding war - ending on about $3 million - with a career-best haul in Melbourne.

"The 23-year-old all-rounder removed the only two Proteas who put up a fight in a searing late afternoon spell which netted him a career best of 5-24," The Australian's cricket writer Peter Lalor said.

At the end of day one, David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne then steered Australia to stumps at 1-45, trailing South Africa by 144 runs.

Play continues Tuesday.

Also, let's get this campaign started:

From great men to not so great men

The Taliban. Where do we even begin with these blokes. First they banned all women from going to university.

Now our Foreign Minister Penny Wong has condemned Afghanistan's Taliban-run administration after it ordered non-governmental organisations (known as NGOs) to stop female employees from coming to work.

The ban comes days after the administration ordered universities in Afghanistan to close to women indefinitely - a shock decision landing less than three months after thousands of girls and women sat university entrance exams across the country.

In a statement on Monday afternoon, Senator Wong condemned the Taliban's most recent decision to ban women from local and foreign NGOs, describing it as "appalling".

"This decision seriously impacts the country's ability to deal with a major humanitarian crisis," Senator Wong said.

"We support the UN which is leading discussions with the Taliban to annul this decision."

Let's calm our farms at the shops

The government has echoed a reminder from peak retail groups for Australians to show respect to retail workers amid the Boxing Day sales rush this week.

The Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister Patrick Gorman issued the call on Monday and kicked off the "No one deserves a serve" campaign, after retail groups warned earlier this month that workers are seeing more customer aggression this Christmas trading period.

Australia's peak retail bodies - the Australian Retailers Association and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association - detailed reports of flashing (not even kidding), threats of physical violence, verbal abuse, and (ridiculously stupid) death threats experienced during the Christmas trading period.

Workers reported receiving verbal and physical abuse when customers were denied discounts, and another worker reported a customer pulling a knife on them in the store.

The spike in aggression comes as the sector face heightened pressure from lingering labour shortages and supply chain issues in the "frenetic" Christmas trading period.

“Nobody deserves to cop a spray for doing their job. We are simply pleading for mutual respect between staff and shoppers. Christmas should be a time of peace and joy for all," ARA chief Paul Zahra said.

SDA national secretary Gerard Dwyer said the young workers, women, and workers from diverse backgrounds can be "disproportionately singled out for mistreatment".

Extend the Gap Year for nan and pop 

Prior to Covid,  Working Holiday Maker visas contributed about $3 billion a year to the economy, with a usual pool of backpackers of between 150,000 and 200,000.

But border closures during the the pandemic drove down the number of working holiday visas by 85% the biggest drop of any visa class.⁠

Now we haven't got an unemployment problem, we've got an employment issue of a different kind - we have a skilled and non-skilled worker shortage.

To combat all this Australia’s peak tourism body now wants the working holiday visa age cut-off to be lifted to provide a wider range of skilled workers and professionals.

The federal government is conducting a migration review to find ways of addressing worker shortages across Australia.

As it stands, the working holiday visa - what most backpackers come here on - is only eligible for people 35 years and younger.

Tourism and Transport Forum Australia chief executive Margy Osmond, said Australia could get more benefits out of the program by lifting age eligibility rules to something like 50.

"It opens up to a marketplace of people who have different skills and perhaps more professional skills that we could use within the [tourism] sector,” Osmond said on Monday.

“We need to be a bit more creative in terms of how we fill [jobs].”

Cheese and whiskers! We've gouda an emergency

First they came for our spinach, now things are being cancelled and recalled from the most hallowed turf  - the dairy aisle.

Coles has pulled its Coles Finest Australian Organic Washed Rind Raw (approx 500g) from shelves after traces of a "microbial contamination" were found. 

The supermarket recalled the cheese which has been available for sale and in-store throughout Victoria and Tasmania since December 14. 

In a statement on Monday a spokesperson said quality testing found E coli, which may cause illness if consumed, in "small batches" of the product.

No other Coles Finest cheese or products are impacted by the recall.

"Customers must not consume this product, and anyone concerned about their health should seek medical advice," a statement read.

"Coles is liaising with the supplier and the regulators regarding further steps."

The affected cheeses have the use by date December 14, 2022 up to and including February 1, 2023.

If you added this to your trolley recently you can return it to any Coles supermarket for a full refund.

Don't hate the player, hate the capitalist game 

Hot Cross Buns are now available. Again.

And people continue to be shocked. Again.

Woolies sell about 2 million of the Easter treats in December so you don't need to be good at STEM to see why the fruity buns are here already.

@woolworths_au

Straight facts. #woolies #wooliesgang #woolworths #easter #aussie #australian #hotcrossbuns

♬ original sound - Woolworths_au

“Our teams across the country are baking up a storm to bring Aussies the best innovation, quality and value that Woolworths has to offer this Easter,” Woolworths merchandise manager Donald Keith said on Monday.

“We sold more than 1.8 million individual hot cross buns the first week they were on sale last year, and we anticipate the same as customers look to close off 2022 with a delicious and favourite treat."

Coles have also followed suit.

But those buns are not as terrifying as Christmas with the Kardashians

There's extravagant and then there's anything Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner do.

Like to mark Jesus' birth.

The family - the most out of touch cohort since the modern day Liberal Party - hosted a Christmas Eve bash that looked like a uterine ultrasound.

Australian singer Sia was hired to perform. 

She did so in a box.

@kimandnorth

♬ original sound - Kim and North
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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/the-oz/news/australia-granted-leave-pass-to-party-like-shane-warne-not-the-creepy-kardashians/news-story/77d2ce0b5d48dc7fcc93f8c243415187