13 March 2018

The Australian Catholic Council for Employment Relations (ACCER) seeks the following orders by the Fair Work Commission (FWC):

• The National Minimum Wage (NMW) be set at $735.00 per week and $19.35 per hour.
• Award wage rates up to the C10 award classification rate be increased by $32.00 per week and award wage rates award wage rates above the C10 rate be increased by 3.9%.
• No award rate shall be less than the NMW.

This submission contends that the current level of the NMW is manifestly inadequate and does not comply with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The NMW is intended to be the basis upon which award wage rates will be set so as to reflect the skills, responsibilities and circumstances of the work covered by awards and their work classifications. The claimed amount for the NMW is an increase of $40.10 per week over the current level of the NMW and $8.10 per week more than the claim in respect of award wages for lower paid workers. The amount claimed for lower paid award rates is designed to provide lower paid workers with a relatively greater increase than that applied to higher paid workers on the basis that it provides relatively more to those most in need. ACCER seeks the adjustment of the NMW over a period of time.

Read the full submission:  ACCER Submission to the Annual Wage Review 2017-2018