The Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) has issued a Circular setting out changes to APS pay rates to apply between 1 September this year and 31 August 2022.
Circular 2021/04: Application of Wage Price Index to agency industrial instruments from 1 September 2021 indicates that the annual percentage change in the private sector Wage Price Index (WPI) for the year to June 2021 was 1.9 per cent.
Under the Government’s Public Sector Workplace Relations Policy 2020, the annual remuneration adjustments in the APS are to be capped in line with the private sector’s WPI, as measured in the annual percentage change released in the latest June quarter.
In its Circular the APSC says the change applies to Agencies with remuneration proposals and industrial instruments approved under the 2020 Policy containing the wage adjustments cap.
“This Circular does not apply to remuneration proposals and industrial instruments approved under earlier Government policies, which will continue to operate in accordance with their existing arrangements which pre-date the 2020 Policy,” the APSC said.
“The Policy requires that annual remuneration adjustments are to be capped in line with the percentage change in private sector WPI from the most recently released June quarter.”
The APSC said the new WPI figure applied only to remuneration adjustments in applicable 2020 Policy-approved remuneration proposals and determinations made by Agency heads.
“This Circular prevails over any inconsistency with any WPI publications issued by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and may be replaced at a later date,” it said.
The full Circular 2021/04 can be accessed on the APSC website at this PS News link.
