Labour costs have fallen for the second successive quarter to leave an annual decline of 1.2% in trend terms, while productivity has continued to rise, according to ABS national accounts data released today.
Academics, employers and unions have roundly criticised the ABS's decision not to review occupational classifications used to keep pace with new and emerging jobs in the digital era, warning it undermines their ability to plan for the workforce of the future.
Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe has told a House of Representatives committee that the RBA is doing what it can to respond to slow wage growth, admitting his stance has been controversial, but has again stopped short of calling for a quick upswing.
Former Australian Public Service Commissioner John Lloyd breached the service's code of conduct by emailing research about government enterprise agreements to a free-market think tank, a high-level inquiry has found.
Union calls for a return to industry-wide bargaining to boost workers' earnings have won the backing of the OECD, which says in its annual global employment report that negotiations across industry sectors can lead to "lower wage inequality".
The Reserve Bank has pointed to the concentration of cutting-edge software and information technology in a small number of businesses and narrow labour market segments as a factor behind flat wages growth.
Real non-farm unit labour costs have retreated after three successive quarters of growth, while productivity in the market sector has seen a modest spike to arrest consecutive quarterly falls, according to ABS national accounts data released today.
In a development that might fuel debate over the links between union power and wage rises, substantially above-average pay increases secured in the heavily-unionised construction sector have pushed bargained private sector wage rises off their recent historic low.
FSU legally represented in banking royal commission; "No end date" comment spurs on-hire dismissal claim; Company's "secret" to closing gender pay gap; Disputes at decade-long low; and surprising lift in US private sector union membership.
