The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has just released its Wage Price Index for the June quarter of 2013, which revealed a continued moderation of wage pressures across the economy, with wages growth approaching the GFC low (see below charts).
According to the ABS, wages grew by 0.7% in the June quarter, in line with analyst’s expectations. Both private sector and public sector wages grew by 0.7% over the quarter. Over the year, total wages grew by 3.0%, with the private sector experiencing 3.0% growth and the public sector 2.9% growth.
You can see from the next chart, which plots non-seasonally adjusted wages growth on a 6-month moving average basis (in order to reduce volatility), that Western Australia has led the nation in wages growth since the commencement of the commodities boom in 2004. However, as is the case everywhere, wages growth is now declining.
In a similar vein, the mining sector has experienced by far the highest wages growth in the nation, with retail trade the laggard over much of this period (see below charts).
There’s not much joy here for workers, given that unemployment is also trending upwards.
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