What will the Minimum Wage Increase be on 1 July 2013?
The Fair Work Commission began its annual minimum wage hearings in Melbourne this morning and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is seeking a $30 per week boost to the minimum wage. It says it is necessary to address a significant gap between the wages of the country's lowest paid and the rest of the workforce.
Business groups, however, are lobbying for a much lower figure. The Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) has submitted an increase of $12 per week, and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) has voted for a rise of $5.80.
According to the ACCI, if the ACTU’s submission is accepted, a $30 per week rise would cost businesses nearly $2.5bn each year and, ultimately, jobs could be on the chopping block. "We are fast reaching an economic tipping point where the capacity of employers to sustain jobs below a 6% unemployment figure is at risk with this excessive union wage claim, the ink barely dry on a federal budget that requires more levy lifting from the corporate sector with $2.4bn in additional taxes plus the quarter of a per cent higher payroll tax in July to fund compulsory superannuation," ACCI CEO Peter Anderson said yesterday.
The hearings continue, and any change to minimum wages will start from 1 July. We will keep you updated on these developments.