Wednesday, November 16, 2016

ABS – Australian Wages Growth at Slowest Rate on Record.

According to figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, the annual rate of wage growth is now a historically low 1.9%, after slowing noticeably in the September quarter.

The bureau says wage growth is relying heavily on increases to the national minimum wage and modern awards, and regularly scheduled enterprise agreement increases.

It said public sector wages are growing more strongly, at 2.3%, with private sector wages growing at an annual rate of just 1.9% (excluding bonuses).

In the last Reserve Bank board minutes, RBA governor Philip Lowe said Australian wages had been growing more slowly than implied by their historical relationship with the unemployment rate.

“[But] the decline in wage growth had been a helpful part of the adjustment of the economy to the end of the resources boom,” he noted.

The ABS data, released on Wednesday, illustrates how the fortunes of different workers have been affected by the huge shifts occurring in the economy.

They show the mining industry has recorded the lowest wage growth of any industry over the last year, with a meagre 1%.

The strongest wage growth has occurred for workers in the healthcare and social assistance industry, at 2.4%.

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