Wages grew 1.3 per cent in the September quarter, the biggest quarterly jump in the 26-year history of the official wage price index survey.
Worker salaries have recorded the strongest quarter of growth in the 26-year history of the official wage price index.
The 1.3 per cent lift in the September quarter eclipsed the 0.9 per cent lift in the three months before, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics' key measure of pay movements.
The index lifted 4 per cent on a yearly basis - the highest annual growth since the March quarter of 2009 - up from 3.6 per cent through to June.
The robust result was in line with quarterly consensus forecasts and slightly higher than the annual prediction, with economists expecting the workplace umpire's minimum and award wage decision to materialise in the September numbers.
Private sector wages grew more than in the public sphere, with the former recording a 4.2 per cent annual lift compared to the 3.5 per cent increase for public sector employees.
ABS head of prices statistics Michelle Marquardt said there were a number of reasons average hourly wages grew so strongly.
Private sector wages were bolstered by the 5.75 per cent boost to minimum and award wages and a 15 per cent pay bump for aged care workers, which both kicked in on July 1.
Workers have also been negotiating bigger salaries to account for the high cost of living.
"The public sector was affected by the removal of state wage caps and new enterprise agreements coming into effect following the finalisation of various bargaining rounds," Ms Marquardt said.
Workers in accommodation and food services recorded the highest wage growth of any industry, with the bureau noting many hospitality workers were paid award wages and had received two increases over the year.
Both the proportion of jobs observing a pay rise and the size of those pay bumps played into the strong quarterly result.
The average wage jump was notably higher - 5.4 per cent compared to four per cent this time last year.
The quarterly wage boost outpaced the 1.2 per cent increase in inflation over the September quarter, representing a real wage improvement in quarterly terms.
Though on an annual basis, consumer prices are still growing faster than wages.
In a joint statement, Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Employment Minister Tony Burke said workers can expect to see annual real wages return to growth early next year.
"This government supports higher wages for Australian workers," they said.
"It's why we passed our Secure Jobs, Better Pay legislation last year, to get wages moving again, and improve conditions by bringing workers and employers back to the bargaining table."
The Reserve Bank of Australia was likely expecting a strong quarter for wage growth due to the well signposted decisions on award wages and other one-off pay bumps for key sectors.
The central bank monitors wage data for signs demand and supply of labour are returning to a more sustainable balance.
ANZ economists Catherine Birch and Madeline Dunk said the strong wage growth was unlikely to bother the RBA that much given it was fuelled by several temporary factors.
"We don't expect today's data will change the RBA's thinking ahead of its December meeting, where we expect the RBA to hold the cash rate at 4.35 per cent," they wrote in a note.
