Private sector rates of pay excluding bonuses increased by 2.4% annually in the December quarter, unchanged from the September quarter, but accelerated slightly over the last three months of the year, according to the ABS.
A spike in consumer price inflation, confirmed by the ABS today, might combine with labour shortages to put pressure on wage rises, which remain near historic lows.
The FWC's minimum wage panel has revealed that it is developing a consumer price index for low paid households and a budget of discretionary items required to participate in society, while one of its members says the pandemic will make that already difficult task even more complex.
Real unit labour costs have risen for the third quarter in a row, as coronavirus-driven reductions unwind, while private sector productivity has dropped for the second time in a year, according to ABS national accounts data released today.
The CPSU has stepped up its criticism of the Morrison Government's public sector wages policy, saying it demands that workers sign up to "unknown" pay rises beyond the first year of new enterprise deals.
The ABS has delivered a small boost to hopes that wages growth might exceed restrained government projections after today's quarterly figures showed an annual lift of 1.5% across the economy.
The number of Australians working from home remains almost double the pre-COVID 19 figure and women are more likely want to expand the arrangement, according to the latest ABS data on how households are faring during the pandemic.
Real unit labour costs surged in the December quarter as the economic recovery gathered pace, while profit and wages shares retreated from the record levels recorded in the September quarter, according to ABS national accounts data released today.
