In figures that don't align with the RBA's warnings about a wage-price spiral, new ABS figures show private sector rates of pay excluding bonuses are rising at an unchanged 3.8% a year.
Unit labour costs have fallen for the second successive quarter as a small decline in hours worked still produced an annual increase of 7.1%, according to ABS national accounts data released today.
A new report recommends creating specific Fair Work Act protections for gig workers in the care sector and reforming the NDIS and aged care funding and regulation models that "reward businesses that avoid the costs and responsibilities of directly employing personal care and support workers".
A senior Treasury Department official says the Federal Budget's forecast that inflation will drop back to 2% to 3% by mid-2025 assumes the FWC will make a minimum wage ruling that "broadly proxies" last year's increases.
Private sector rates of pay increased to 3.8% annually in the March quarter, up from 3.6% in the previous three-month period, according to the ABS, but relatively weak public sector rises have restricted the economy-wide movement to 3.6% in trend terms, about half the rate of inflation.
The RBA is continuing to warn about the dangers of a wage-price spiral, saying the chances of it have declined, but could rise again if the FWC awards a "large" minimum rise this year or government employers ease or drop pay caps.
The Productivity Commission says a review of the Albanese Government's new multi-employer bargaining measures should consider amending the Competition and Consumer Act so the ACCC can play a role.
The Productivity Commission has today recommended the Albanese Government strip back the modern awards objective to seven points and establish an independent dispute resolution mechanism within the FWC for platform workers.
The Albanese Government is not attracted to "scorched earth" IR policies to address Australia's productivity challenges, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said today, ahead of tomorrow's tabling of the final report of the Productivity Commission's productivity inquiry.
The one in every six workers who took up the Morrison Government's invitation to withdraw their super during the pandemic mostly took the maximum $20,000 or their whole account balance, tended to spend the windfall on gambling and consumer items, and cut their retirement income by $120,000 in today's dollars, according to a new academic study.