Australian employees in public office positions are to receive a 2% pay increase following the latest decision by Australia’s Remuneration Tribunal.
The pay increase will apply to staff in senior offices in the public service and statutory agencies, certain government-owned businesses and part-time offices, secretaries of departments, the federal judiciary, and parliamentarians.
The pay rise will come into effect from 1 July 2017. It represents an increase of 1.6% per annum over the 18 months since the last pay rise issued by the Tribunal, which was effective from 1 January 2016.
Public office holders received a 2% pay increase in January 2016. Prior to that, the last pay increase was granted in July 2013.
The Remuneration Tribunal, which is an independent statutory authority, considers economic conditions, past and projected movements in remuneration in the private and public sectors, the outcomes of public office reviews, and authoritative external sources, such as the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Australian Bureau of Statistics, when making its decision.
The Tribunal is also obliged to take into account the Annual Wage Review of the Fair Work Commission. The commission recommended a 3.3% increase in the minimum wage in its 2017 report.
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The Remuneration Tribunal said: “The Tribunal considers it important that remuneration for offices in its jurisdiction be maintained at appropriate levels over the longer term to attract and retain people of the calibre required for these important high level offices.”