Wages rose by more than four percent over the past 12 months but recent figures suggest the rises are coming off the boil
The seasonally-adjusted Wage Price Index (WPI), released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics today, shows a 0.8 percent rise in the June quarter 2024, bringing the annual increase to 4.1 percent.
Private sector wages grew by 0.7 percent in June quarter, down from 0.9 percent in the March quarter 2024.
ABS head of prices statistics Michelle Marquardt said the June quarter 2024 private sector rise was the lowest rise for a June quarter since 2021 and the equal lowest rise for any quarter since December quarter 2021.
Public sector wages rose 0.9 percent, up from 0.6 per cent in the March quarter 2024.
The increase in public sector wages was lower than in December quarter 2023 (1.3 percent) but higher, for the sector, than for any June quarter since 2012 (1.0 percent).
“The stronger June quarterly rise for the public sector was largely due to the newly synchronised timing pattern of Commonwealth public sector agreement increases,” Ms Marquardt said.
“All Australian Public Service employees received pay increases effective March 14 2024. This led to a larger increase in the contribution Commonwealth jobs made to public sector wage growth.
“Pay rises for these jobs had previously been paid at different times across quarters depending on the timing of individual agency agreements.”
The full report can be found on the ABS website.
