‘Workers should not go backwards because of Donald Trump’s war’: Unions want 6% minimum wage increase

Australian unions are upping their demands for an increase to the minimum wage, lifting their claim from 5 per cent to 6 per cent.

Unions have been arguing for a 5 per cent Annual Wage Review increase for the nation’s lowest-paid workers, but are now suggesting that a 6 per cent increase is needed, as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East “continues to tear” into workers’ living standards, and in light of the 2026 budget forecast that inflation will hit 5 per cent by mid-year, if not higher.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions’ (ACTU) claim would increase the minimum wage to $26.45 per hour, lifting the weekly rate to $1,004.88.

Even before the conflict, the ACTU said, Australian workers’ real wages were 4.5 per cent lower than they were in March 2021 after the last price spike due to COVID-19, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.

Sally McManus, the ACTU secretary, said that the “lowest-paid workers in Australia should not go backwards because of Donald Trump’s war”.

“They have the least capacity to cope with price increases, so their wages must keep up. Unions will argue for a wage rise of 6 per cent because inflation is now expected to hit 5 per cent and these workers are still behind where they were in 2021,” she said.

“When unions made our initial wage claim in March, inflation was only predicted to be 4.2 per cent – now it’s expected to hit at least 5 per cent. But the truth is no one knows what will happen with oil prices, and inflation could be even higher. The lowest-paid Australians can’t be left short like they were during the post-COVID inflation spike.”

“The lowest-paid workers spend every cent they earn. No one can save when on minimum wages. When wages fail to keep up with rising costs, people have no option but to cut back on the essentials like food and doctors’ visits. This should be unacceptable to everyone,” McManus said.

“Employer groups always claim that just about any wage rise puts pressure on inflation, but that is not grounded in reality. In fact, the total value of our revised 6 per cent claim will only add 0.64 per cent – or less than 1 percentage point – to the national wages bill.”

The upcoming Annual Wage Review decision is due within weeks and directly impacts the wages of millions of Australian workers whose pay is set by awards.

Jerome Doraisamy

Jerome Doraisamy is the managing editor of Momentum Media’s professional services suite, encompassing Lawyers Weekly, HR Leader, Accountants Daily, and Accounting Times. He has worked as a journalist and podcast host at Momentum Media since February 2018. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of the Minds Count Foundation.

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