Reserve Bank governor-elect Michele Bullock has urged the central bank’s salaried workforce to support a new pay offer to ensure they get pay rises at the same time as contracted staff.
Fresh enterprise negotiations have begun between the RBA and the Finance Sector Union for a new workplace agreement, with the bank offering pay increases significantly lower than an inflation-linked claim advanced by the union.
In a staff webinar held on July 12 – a few days before she was anointed to take the reins of the RBA in September - Deputy Governor Bullock advised staff to accept a 4 per cent pay rise offer for 2023 followed by a 3.5 per cent increase next year and 3 per cent in 2025.
The RBA’s offer is almost in line with pay rises granted to Westpac staff for 2023 and 2024, but inferior to the 5 per cent pay increases agreed to by the National Australia Bank earlier this month.
During the online briefing, Bullock told staff the pay rises were a good offer because the 4 per cent increase in 2023 was greater than the current wage-price index and better than some agreements now being submitted to the Fair Work Commission.
Bullock also told staff that the RBA was looking for minimal changes to the existing enterprise agreement because the bank was already undergoing significant organisational change.
However, she told staff that the bank was proposing to improve some entitlements particularly in the areas of paid parental and compassionate leave.
The RBA currently offers 14 weeks parental leave and is offering to boost the entitlement to 16 weeks.
It is believed the bank is also proposing to increase overtime rates for part-time staff.
The bank’s pay and entitlements offer has stoked tensions with the union, which wants fatter pay increases and parental leave of up to 26 weeks.
The FSU appears to be digging in for a protracted stoush over the pay offer, which national secretary, Julia Angrisano described as “below” industry standards.
Despite that assertion Angrisano did not disclose what pay increase(s) the union had sought in its log of claims submitted to the RBA.
“The RBA will not be able to attract or retain staff with its current inadequate offer,” Angrisano said in a statement.
“The RBA needs to be paying its employees competitive salaries but this offer falls below wage outcomes secured across the finance sector.”
Angrisano also pilloried the RBA for its approach to communicating information to staff about the progress of the enterprise talks.
“The FSU is concerned about the RBA limiting discussion about the detail of EA negotiations on its staff communication channels,” she said.
“We understand that only the RBA’s position is being aired and other views are being deleted on the basis they are ‘external sources’.
“Our members should not have the views of their union deleted from internal forums.
“We remain concerned that the RBA persists with the view that it will not permit union presence at staff inductions or permit union information on the Bank’s intranet, beyond contact details for union workplace representatives.”
The union indicated in a memo to RBA members published on its website last week that the stand-off over pay could run beyond September and would be seeking a guarantee from the bank all pay rises eventually agreed to would be back-dated.
“We know staff may be concerned about missing out on a pay increase,” the union told RBA members in the memo.
“However, we’ll be calling on RBA to commit to back paying staff in our next meeting, which they are able to do on any increases for this year if negotiations continue beyond September.”
An RBA spokesperson last night confirmed that the current enterprise agreement was due to expire in October and described the discussions with the FSU as “constructive”.
“These discussions are ongoing, and a draft agreement will be put to a vote by eligible employees at the appropriate time,” the RBA spokesperson said.