Wages Are Too Low

Wages underpin the standard of living for many households. To lift our economic well-being, we need wages to rise faster than inflation on a sustainable basis over a long period.

• A plan to raise wages includes a lift in the minimum wage to $15 an hour, ensure that more workers are covered by collective bargaining on an industry basis, invest in skills and education and lift productivity while ensuring the benefits are shared.
• Wage rises are not keeping up with increases in the cost of living.
• The wage gap with Australia has widened and now the National Government says a 30% gap is a ‘competitive advantage’.
• The minimum wage went up by only 25 cents an hour in both 2010 and 2011, the lowest increase for 8 years.
• The Government claims that real (i.e. after taking account of inflation) after-tax average wages have gone up – but that is only because the tax cuts were weighted towards those on or above the average wage.
• The National Government is attacking the rights of unions that advocate for wage increases.

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