Wages up but still lagging

themercury.com.au

TASMANIA has led wage growth across the country in the past year, but still lags well behind in average annual salaries, latest figures show.

Employment website SEEK yesterday released its latest employment report, which revealed Tasmania saw the country’s largest salary growth over the year at 5.1 per cent.

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The average advertised salary across Australia was up 1.7 per cent compared to last year, at an average of $88,746.

Despite the 5.1 per cent increase, Tasmania’s average advertised salary of $79,951 was by far the lowest average salary in the nation. The number of local jobs advertised over the past 12 months had also decreased by 6.3 per cent after a 4.8 per cent rise the year prior. .

Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief Michael Bailey said the increase in wages was good news for all Tasmanian workers, but the high levels of disadvantage across the community should not be forgotten either.

“We know there’s employment growth and increasing levels of business holding onto their staff too, which shows through wage increases,” he said. “We want to see a growing quality of life for all Tasmanians, and although a rise in wages is a terrific thing, we need to remember our focus needs to include getting all Tasmanians into gainful employment.”

Mr Bailey said sustained wages growth was dependent on the health of the overall economy.

“At the moment we’re all holding our breath to see what the coronavirus does and how that plays out for Tassie,” he said.

Mr Bailey said Tasmania had long had the lowest average wages in the country, and he said this would always be an issue.

“There are more professional jobs in the major cities that are very high paying,” he said.

“It’s always going to be a problem for us because businesses like the Commonwealth Bank, for example, have their head office in Sydney, and their average wages for their executives are in the millions, which we’re never going to achieve in Tassie.

“But, we know by increasing education in Tasmania, we’ll see greater access to greater wages.”