Unions
COVID recovery fails to deliver for Australian workers
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has shown that wage growth in Australia stagnated at a miserly 0.6% in the September quarter, for an annual increase of only 2.2%.
Compared to the current inflation rate of 3.6%, this indicates a wage cut for the average Australian, including for public sector nurses and midwives who currently receive annual increases to a maximum of 2.5%.
The Wage Price Index statistics released by the ABS shows that the Morrison Government’s widely touted economic recovery has not trickled down to workers.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has indicate that the Morrison Government’s sustained attack on workers’ rights and bargaining power, combined with legislation embedding insecure work by making it easier for employers to keep workers casual, are continuing to keep working Australians’ wages low.
““Eight years of record low wage growth through a series of Liberal governments, is not a coincidence. The Morrison Government has done nothing to address the systemic issues which are keeping wages low,” said Sally McManus, Secretary of the ACTU.
“We need immediate action on the issue of insecure work in this country. An economic recovery that sees more people working multiple jobs, not having paid entitlements, and having limited bargaining power in their workplaces, is not a recovery at all.”
The ACTU and affiliated unions, including the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association are running a campaign called Secure Jobs – Worth Fighting For to ensure that Australian workers get their fair share from the COVID-19 recovery.