The Fair Work Commission has announced an increase to minimum wages.
This year, minimum wages will increase by 2.4 percent, which will mean the new national minimum wage will be $672.70 per week or $17.70 per hour. This is an increase from the current minimum wage of $656.90 per week or $17.29 per hour, which was the result of a 2.5 percent increase last year.
The Fair Work Ombudsman’s website states that the increase applies to employees who get their pay rates from the national minimum wage, a modern award or a registered agreement (in some cases). The new minimum wage will also apply to employees who aren’t covered by an award or an agreement.
The new minimum wage will not affect employees who are already getting paid more than the new minimum wage.
The Fair Work Commission are working on updating their pay tools with the new pay rates and have stated that it takes about two to three weeks to update the pay rates in each award and they will update their tools accordingly. Last year, the tools were updated and ready by June 29.
The Fair Work Ombudsman have recommended that businesses subscribe to their email updates and/or follow them on social media to keep up to date.
More information, including examples of how the increase can affect employees, can be found here.