Chief Minister Andrew Barr has ruled out a larger pay rise for senior public servants in the ACT, arguing high earners will benefit from a cut to federal income tax instead.
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But the union representing public servants in the territory has said Mr Barr was "insulting" and "inflammatory" when he advised the union of the government's position in a letter.
Mr Barr's letter to the Community and Public Sector Union, sent on February 7, said cost-of-living pressures for staff on higher incomes would be partially offset by the federal government's stage three tax cuts in the 2024-25 financial year.
The letter, seen by The Canberra Times, includes a table that shows a worker on a $120,000 salary would pay $1875 less in income tax in 2024-25 compared to 2022-23.
A worker paid $200,000 annually would pay $9075 less in income tax over the same period.
Mr Barr said before delivering a mid-year budget update last week he was conscious high-income earners had a legislated income tax cut.
The government was committed to "lifting the incomes of our employees who have the lowest wages and salaries", Mr Barr said.
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The CPSU said Mr Barr's letter was sent after the union rejected the government's pay and conditions offer.
The offer, proposed in November, includes a $1250 cost-of-living supplement and a flat increase of $1750 in February.
"The government is carefully balancing generous remuneration to our workforce with a responsible and disciplined fiscal strategy to return to a balanced position in the medium term," Mr Barr wrote in the letter to the union.
"Unfortunately, the CPSU wage claim does not represent an affordable or fiscally responsible approach for the government to adopt."
Over the four-year deal proposed by the government, a worker on a full-time salary of $53,868 would receive a 21.4 per cent pay rise, while a worker paid $157,201 annually would receive a 12.4 per cent increase.
The offer includes a mix of percentage and flat increases over the life of the agreement.
An enrolled nurse paid $65,934 would receive an 18.9 per cent pay increase over four years, pushing their salary to $78,373.
A senior official currently paid $123,710 would receive a 13.7 per cent pay increase in the same period, pushing their salary to $140,624 by December 2026.
CPSU acting ACT regional secretary Brenton Higgins said the union remained committed to negotiating in good faith.
"But we cannot reach a resolution if the offer from the ACT government doesn't maintain and improve real wages and conditions for ACTPS workers," Mr Higgins said.
"This letter has deeply angered many ACT Public Service employees, and understandably so."
Mr Higgins said the union had believed it would have a resolution to pay negotiations early this year, but the letter from Mr Barr showed the government did not intend to reconsider its offer.
"ACT Public Service employees came together and made sacrifices to get Canberra through a difficult few years, the least Andrew Barr could do is take their feedback seriously," he said.
The Reserve Bank expects inflation to outpace wage increases until early 2024.
Mr Barr's letter said there would be "significant gains" for senior staff, including flextime.
"It should be noted that since 2003, pay increases in the [ACT public service] have not only remained competitive but they have been consistently above [the consumer price index]," the letter said.
"This has provided a buffer to mitigate against short term CPI increase, such as that which is currently flowing through the economy."
A spokeswoman for the ACT government said the government's core pay offer provided increases for all staff.
"The government has clearly stated its focus is providing higher percentage increases to lower paid staff who are feeling the biggest impact from inflation pressures," the spokeswoman said.
"The offer provides the greatest percentage increase for lowest paid staff, but the actual dollar increase is still higher for higher paid staff."
The spokeswoman said the government would continue to negotiate in good faith.
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Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
