ACTU pushes for 4.5 per cent lift in minimum wage | Australian Markets

The Australian Council of Trade Unions will push the Fair Work Commission to grant a 4.5 per cent lift in the minimum wage on the upcoming annual wage review.

A 4.5 per cent lift would increase the minimum wage to $25.18 per hour or $2143 to $49,770 for an annual full-time employee.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus stated the present wage fee for a full-time grownup employee was not enough to fulfill cost-of-living pressures.

“We are not America and no one should be left without a liveable wage after working full-time hours,” she stated.

The FWC’s annual review units award charges, or minimum pays ranges, throughout the economic system and impacts some 2.6 million staff.

It doesn’t instantly have an effect on wages for staff on enterprise agreements or particular person contracts.

A call on the new award is normally delivered in June, with the new fee kicking off from July 1.

“A 4.5 per cent rise for 2.6 million award-reliant workers is what they need to get ahead of inflation caused by global supply problems and price gouging by the likes of supermarkets and insurance companies,” Ms McManus stated.

“Wages move when unions fight for them and are assisted by governments who are prepared to also do the heavy lifting by intervening at the Fair Work Commission and updating workplace laws to close wage cutting loopholes.”

Felicia, a incapacity help employee, stood exterior the FWC on Thursday morning with Ms McManus and different staff.

She stated she was battling cost-of-living pressures in education, housing, youngster care and taking her youngsters to dinner.

“It’s really hard for us to live our day to day lives,” she stated.

Worker pay bumps are additionally sweeping throughout the Australian economic system following the passage of Same Job Same Pay laws final yr.

The industrial relations reforms search to equalise pay charges between labour rent and direct rent staff at large-scale enterprises.

In March, the Flight Attendants’ Association of Australia introduced some 750 further Qantas cabin crew would obtain pay bumps of up to $20,000 a yr as a consequence of Same Job Same Pay.

A Qantas attendant, who spoke anonymously with NewsWire final month, stated she welcomed the commercial relations adjustments.

“The whole thing with Same Job Same Pay is they are doing the same job,” she stated.

“It’s not like being employed by a labour-hire company changes the nature of the work.

“They do the same training, they wear the same uniform.”

But companies warn that pay will increase with out commensurate will increase in employee productiveness is not going to be sustainable over time.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has referred to as for a 2.5 per cent lift in the minimum wage, whereas the Australian Industry Group has proposed a 2.6 per cent lift.