2023-24 Annual Wage Review in progress

As most employers are acutely aware, the 2023-24 Annual Wage Review has been in progress before the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for months. Whilst the amount of a potential wage increase has become increasingly difficult to predict, a decision is expected in early-June.

As we reported prior to Easter, the Albanese Government has advocated for a wage increase that will mirror inflation to ensure that low-paid workers’ wages don’t go backwards whilst encouraging the FWC to exclude stage three tax cuts and cost-of-living relief from its deliberations. The most recent ABS data indicates an increase of at least 3.6% would be necessary to ensure low-paid workers’ wages don’t fall behind. Meanwhile, the Federal Budget estimated wages will continue to outpace inflation by 0.5% annually, before the gap widens to 1% by 2026-27.

Unions are chasing a 5% increase, which would lift the National Minimum Wage from $882.80 per week ($23.23 per hour) to $926.90 weekly ($24.39 per hour), but employer groups have lobbied for an increase as low as 2%, arguing that last year’s record increase of 5.75% (on top of the previous year’s 4.6%+) resulted in the “overcompensation” of award-covered employees, who are presently deriving the benefit of inflation coming down.

Earlier in the year, Senator Barbara Pocock confirmed the Greens would take the rare step of making a submission to the FWC regarding the wage case, expressing the view that wages should remain ahead of inflation by 2-3%.

ES Subscribers will be notified by email when the 2023-24 Annual Wage Review decision is handed down. Consultations are scheduled in Sydney on 22 May, so it is unlikely this year’s decision will be published any earlier than the first week of June (Note: in 2023, consultations occurred on 17 May, with the decision being published on 2 June 2023).

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