Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Ghosh for that question and for focusing on wages of Australian workers and the plans that the Albanese government have been putting in place to make sure we get wages moving again after a decade of wage stagnation and a decade of economic policy that sought to keep wages growth low. Creating good, secure, permanent jobs is fundamental to our government's economic plan, and it's central to householders being able to deal with many of the cost-of-living pressures they're currently experiencing.

Under the Labor government, workers are earning more, with four consecutive quarters of annual real wages growth, and keeping more of what they earn, with our tax cuts for every single taxpayer. Over the past two years, the government has argued for an increase to the minimum wage three times. At every opportunity we've had, we have argued for a wage increase through the minimum wage increase process. We've supported and funded increases for aged-care workers and early childhood educators, and we've seen average wage growth almost double compared to the wages growth that was seen under the former Liberal government. Wages are growing; inflation is falling. Wages have grown in both the public and private sectors, and wages in the private sector have actually grown faster than public sector wages. A million jobs have been created, more jobs than had been created in any previous parliamentary term, and we've seen a record number of women working, including working full time, with more choices available to them. Since we came to government, the average full-time worker is now earning an extra $159 per week, and we have the smallest gender pay gap on record. But we know that there is more to do.