Latest News in the Workplace
Fair Work Commission 2023 Minimum Wage Review
| National Award Wage Increases
The Fair Work Commission has today, 2 June 2023, handed down the 2022 minimum wage review increasing all award wages by 5.75%. The national minimum wage is now based on the higher C13 rate in the manufacturing award, and the 5.75% is to be applied to this higher level for the national minimum wage, taking it from $21.38 to $23.23 per hour. Implications For Employers The consequences of this decision will be significant, particularly in the current economic climate. Employers must ensure that employees whose rates of pay are at or around minimum rates are increased accordingly to avoid heavy fines and or back pay obligations. For staff on annualised salaries or ‘all in’ hourly rates, employers will need to take steps to ensure that their annualised salaries or hourly rates remain high enough to meet their overall minimum award obligations moving forward (and that their workplace agreements correctly facilitate these arrangements). Particularly given the compounding effects of overtime and penalty rate entitlements. For those undertaking enterprise bargaining, employers can expect increased wage demands from unions and employee groups. Employers with enterprise agreements or other arrangements should seek advice to ensure that the award wage increases do not ‘leap-frog’ the rates in these other instruments, resulting in underpayments to employees and exposing them to fines.
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