State minimum wage to increase

The minimum wage for adult employees on State awards - most of them women - will rise by $29 a week to $557.40 from July 1.

In its ruling on the State wage case the WA Industrial Relations Commission said that since Perth's CPI had risen by 4.3%, the decision represented a 1.14% increase in real wages for the State's lowest-paid employees.

The increase was not greater than the increase of 5.9% in wages generally in WA over the last 12 months as measured by the Wage Price Index, and was below the forecast future increase in wages in WA of 5.75% for 2007/08.

The Commission said that WA's wages growth had been the highest in the nation. It had considered the past wage rate movement of others in the community against a background of record low unemployment, record high levels of labour participation and strong labour demand.

"About 30 per cent of WA Australian employees are within the State jurisdiction, though the $29 increase will apply only to the approximately two per cent of employees who are actually paid the minimum wage, most of whom are female," the Commission said.