Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Today's disappointing ABS wages data confirms that this Prime Minister continues to preside over record-low wages growth. Given that everything is going up except people's wages, why is the Prime Minister making it even harder for working Australians to make ends meet by supporting unilateral cuts to penalty rates? Why does the Prime Minister only ever look after the top end of town?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Wage Price Index increased by 0.6 per cent in the June quarter. That's the fastest quarterly increase since March 2014. While the growth in average wages has been relatively low, we have turned the corner on wages growth, and the increase in the June quarter is an indication of that. I repeat: it's the fastest quarterly increase since March 2014. As the Reserve Bank governor said only a week or so ago:

… the rate of wages growth appears to have troughed and there are increased reports of skills shortages in some areas.

The relatively modest wage growth shows again why our personal income tax relief of $530 this year for middle-income families or taxpayers is so important. It also underlines the importance of strong jobs growth. We are starting to see a pickup in wages growth because of more demand for labour. The laws of supply and demand have not been suspended. The Reserve Bank governor notes that. We're seeing more demand for labour. We're seeing skills shortages starting to develop in some areas, hence wages are starting to move up. That means we need to maintain the momentum for strong economic growth. All of that growth we have seen has been driven and enabled by our economic policies. We're bringing down energy prices. Companies are paying lower taxes. Individuals are paying less tax. Small and medium firms are investing and hiring. That is why last calendar year we saw the largest jobs growth in any calendar year in Australia's history. We are delivering more jobs and stronger economic growth, and that is starting to be reflected, as the Reserve Bank governor foreshadowed, in the wage growth figure, which, as I said, is the fastest quarterly increase since March 2014.