Australian Pay Growth Hits 3.4% In First Increase Since Mid-2024

Economic Momentum Builds As Enterprise Agreements Drive Wage Recovery

The Australian labor market is showing signs of renewed strength as wages grew 3.4% in the year to March 2025, marking the first acceleration in pay growth since June 2024. This rebound comes after several quarters of slowing wage increases, offering welcome relief for workers facing ongoing cost-of-living pressures.

Why It Matters

After months of declining wage growth that bottomed out at 3.2% in December 2024, this reversal suggests Australia's labor market may be regaining momentum despite economic headwinds. While still below the 4.0% peak recorded in March 2024, the uptick indicates employers are responding to persistent talent shortages and worker demands for compensation that keeps pace with living costs.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data released today, the Wage Price Index rose 0.9% in the March quarter alone, maintaining the same quarterly growth rate as the previous period.

"Annual wage growth ticked up for the first time since the June quarter 2024," said Michelle Marquardt, ABS head of prices statistics. "The 3.4 per cent increase in wages for the year to the March quarter 2025 was higher than the 3.2 per cent to the December quarter 2024, but lower than the 4.0 per cent at the same time last year."

---

Truth matters. Quality journalism costs.

Your subscription to Mencari directly funds the investigative reporting our democracy needs. For less than a coffee per week, you enable our journalists to uncover stories that powerful interests would rather keep hidden. No corporate influence. No compromises. Just honest journalism when we need it most.

---