Agreements lodged with the FWC in the fortnight to September 9 delivered annual rises of just 2.4% – the lowest in the short history of the Commission's "real-time" bargained wage data – after education deals effectively paying 1.7% a year to more than 10,000 workers dragged down the average increase.
The Productivity Commission says the workplace tribunal should have a "fast-track process" for early involvement in industrial disputes on the docks, while waterfront employers should have more options for taking their own protected action beyond lockouts.
Private sector rates of pay increased by 2.7% annually in the June quarter, lifting off historic lows but failing to make much of a dent on surging inflation.
The Albanese Government has told the FWC it backs a minimum pay rise for the 365,000 aged care workers because their work value "is significantly higher than modern awards currently reflect" and "gender-based assumptions" have undervalued their labour.
The MUA claims the competition regulator has failed to show a causal link between waterfront productivity and the content of enterprise agreements negotiated between the union and major stevedores.
The TWU's in-principle three-year agreement with Australia Post subsidiary StarTrack will deliver annual wage rises that match CPI increases in the second and third years of the deal if inflation exceeds 3%.
The ACTU's bid for 10 days paid family and domestic violence leave has been bolstered by new FWC-commissioned research indicating that a third of recent agreements have a paid entitlement and half of those deals provide at least the quantum the peak body is seeking.
The Victorian Labor government has flagged it will aim for modest annual pay rises of 2%, setting the scene for an arm-wrestle with public sector unions in bargaining over a series of major enterprise agreements.
Less than 2% of private sector workers will be covered by agreements by 2030 if the current rate of decline in bargaining continues, according to new analysis by the Centre for Future Work.
The Victorian ALP will revive attempts to ensure that all public sector employees can bargain over the same matters, if it is re-elected at the State election on Saturday.
