More than 100,000 workers have won pay rises of up to 7 per cent, according to new data.
But the average annual increase came in at 3.8 per cent — a sub-inflationary figure that means many faced a wage cut in real terms.
That’s according to the latest released by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations on Friday. The figures are based on 762 Enterprise Agreements, covering 102,200 workers, with quantifiable wage increases approved in the June quarter.
The average annual increase was a slight increase on the March quarter result — up a tenth of a percentage point. It was also a full percentage point higher than last year’s June quarter result.
The quarterly improvement was driven by public sector agreements in which the average annualised wage increase was 3.7 per cent (up from 3.2 per cent). The average increase for private sector agreements held steady at 3.9 per cent.
The average agreement duration was 2.4 years.
Nurses and midwives at several Healthe Care-run hospitals in NSW received an average annual pay rise of 7 per cent — the largest among agreements where the wage increase was quantifiable.
Those at UnitingCare-run hospitals in Queensland, and ISS Perth Aviation Security workers received annual average pay rises of 6.6 per cent, according to the data
On the other end of the scale, of the major agreements approved, Victorian employees of disability services provider Aruma received 2 per cent, while workers at Track Protection Australia received 2.1 per cent.
In all the above cases, unions were the bargaining representatives for workers covered by the agreements.
They were approved during the second quarter of the year when — which strips out large price rises and falls caused by, for example, seasonal changes — came in at 5.9 per cent.
Think-tank the Australia Institute’s Centre for Future Work that employees covered by current enterprise agreements plateaued at about 2.6 million from around 2010 to 2014.
They now cover about 1.8 million — less than 15 per cent of employees.
Enterprise agreements are typically negotiated between businesses and unions representing workers. The latest trade union membership data, released by the , found 12.5 per cent of employees were union members — a historic low.
The Albanese government has made some reforms to the enterprise bargaining system, introduced by Labor in the early 1990s, after criticism from unions that it was no longer fit for purpose.
Those reforms under the came into effect in June and included multi-employer bargaining, which allows unions to negotiate agreements that would apply to cover multiple employers.
The United Workers Union, the Australian Education Union and the Independent Education Union of Australia will be the first to test the new system. The Fair Work Commission on Tuesday granted their application to pursue an agreement that would cover 64 employers and their employees in the early childhood education and care sector.
The reforms also , strengthened flexible work provisions under the Fair Work Act, and gave the Fair Work Commission news powers to resolve protracted bargaining disputes.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-highest-and-lowest-pay-rises-see-how-yours-compares/tggme1x5a Workers who got the highest (and lowest) pay rises: See how yours compares
