Dan Andrews has set Victorians up for a Budget emergency

By Leith van Onselen

Throughout the Victorian Labor Government’s term, we have witnessed outrageous pay claims from various quarters, including:

• a 14% pay rise over three years for Metro Train workers (including a 3% sign-on bonus), which took the average salary of train driver to $143,600 (plus superannuation) and a ticket inspector or station officer to $98,797 (plus superannuation);
• a 20% pay rise over four years plus five weeks leave and automatic salary progression demanded by the public services union for its 30,000 public servants; and
• a 20% pay rise over four years demanded by the Health Workers Union, which represents 55,000 hospital workers.
• The Police Association demanding a 5% annual pay rise over three years, plus the introduction of penalties for weekends and public holidays; and
• The United Firefighters Union demanding pay rises of 9.7% a year for three years.