The Baillieu Government has supported Department of Health executive officers giving themselves increases of almost 50 per cent in total remuneration while it baulks at fair pay rises and plays hardball in public sector bargaining for nurses, teachers and other public sector workers, Shadow Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations, Tim Pallas said.
Mr Pallas said a secret Baillieu Government Cabinet plan to reduce nurse numbers as it sticks to its 2.5 per cent pay rise offer was a disgrace when government executives received significant pay rises and bonuses as revealed in 2011 departmental annual reports.
“The annual reports show that Baillieu Government executives shared nearly $10.5 million in bonuses,” Mr Pallas said.
“It is staggeringly hypocritical that department executives have each pocketed a 46.4 per cent – or about $58,000 - increase in total remuneration.
“Mr Baillieu wants to stunt the wages of hard working Victorian nurses and cut nurse numbers, yet he is happy for departmental executives to receive significant salary increases well above the government’s 2.5 per cent pay offer for public sector workers.
“These massive executive salary increases have also spread to executives in other government departments with Department of Human Services’ executives taking average pay increases of about 33.8 per cent, or approximately $40,600 per executive.
“Mr Baillieu must come clean to Victorian workers why department executives deserve pay rises well above the 2.5 per cent offer it has on the table for hard working nurses, teachers and other public sector workers.”
Mr Pallas said the Baillieu Government had talked up its preparedness to bargain in good faith but failed to deliver for hard working families.
“Mr Baillieu must stop grandstanding and start negotiating in good faith for the benefit of Victorian workers,” he said.