Anthony Albanese Backs 5.5% Pay Rise for Millions of Australians

May 11, 2022

Anthony Albanese, leader of the opposition, has said that he will support a wage rise of 5.1% to ensure that workers’ incomes do not fall behind the rate of inflation.

This stance puts him at odds with the government and business groups, who argue that Labor’s economic policies are not feasible.

Mr Albanese declined to guarantee that pay rises would keep pace with inflation at Sunday’s leaders’ discussion.

Mr. Albanese stated in an interview with ABC radio that he was not in support of the union movement’s demand for a 5.5 percent raise in the minimum wage before the Fair Work Commission’s discussions.

“No, the 5.5 is higher, of course, than the inflation rate. What I say is that people can’t afford to go backwards,” he said.

“The ACTU make their claim independently,” Mr Albanese added.

“We’re not the ACTU. What I said this morning was that when the Fair Work Commission considers any minimum pay increase, people should not go backwards.”

When directly asked if he would support a wage increase of 5.1 percent to keep up with inflation, Mr. Albanese replied, “Absolutely.”

The Prime Minister stated that the Leader of the Opposition had given the false impression that voting for Labor would raise wages automatically.

“He is just pulling people’s legs,” he said.