Treasurer Jim Chalmers is setting billions of dollars aside in Tuesday’s Budget for wage increases in the aged care and child care sectors, as the Fair Work Commission mulls over pay rises for employees in the female-dominated industries. Source: The Australian.
Dr Chalmers revealed yesterday there would be a “multibillion-dollar provision in the Budget for better wages in the care economy” alongside $1.1bn over the next four years to put superannuation into paid parental leave.
“The primary focus of our economic plan is to help ease inflation and the cost of living, with a big focus on delivering more help for middle Australia and more help for mums,” he said.
“Whether it’s a bigger tax cut for more than 90 per cent of women, paying superannuation on paid parental leave, wiping HELP debt, or funding wage increases in aged care and childcare – the women of Australia will be big beneficiaries of the Budget we hand down on Tuesday.”
Dr Chalmers indicated that more aged care workers would get a pay rise, after Labor last year provided $11.3 billion in the wake of a 15 per cent wage increase for nurses in aged care.
Tuesday’s Budget is expected to provide pay rises for other workers, after the commission decided in April that chefs, cleaners and laundry hands working in the sector should be moved from level two to level three of the aged care award, resulting in a pay increase of about seven per cent.
FULL STORY
Budget to include ‘multi-billion dollar’ investment in care economy wages (By Sarah Ison, The Australian)
RELATED COVERAGE
CSSA Federal Pre-Budget Submission Calls for Economic Reforms (Catholic Social Services Australia)
