The Reserve Bank is facing the prospect of industrial action as its hardball negotiations with the Finance Sector Union intensify with no sign of agreement. The union yesterday rejected a revised pay offer from the central bank, which followed a meeting between RBA Governor Michele Bullock and FSU national secretary, Julia Angrisano. Angrisano yesterday publicly called on Bullock to intervene in the negotiations to avert the risk of industrial action. Under the original offer stumped up by the bank in July, RBA staff were offered a 4 per cent pay rise this year, followed by an extra 3.5 per cent in 2024 and 3 per cent in 2025. That offer was rejected by 57 per cent of RBA staff in a ballot held in August. Since then, the bank and the union have met on several occasions, with the bank only prepared to improve the third year component of the offer to 3.5 percent. Angrisano on Tuesday described the amended pay offer as “paltry” and warned that members would now consider industrial action if it was not increased. “Unless the RBA lifts pay rates, it runs the risk of losing even more workers to the banks which have shown a keen interest in recruiting RBA staff in the past,” Angrisano said. “Meetings held last week to brief members on the bank’s offer revealed the impact skyrocketing prices are having on the families of RBA staff. “Like everyone else they are being hit with rising costs for fuel, energy and mortgage interest rates. “The clear message from our members at the RBA is that they are fed up with the bank’s penny pinching and they are not prepared to accept anything short of a fair pay rise.” Angrisano said that the RBA’s proposed pay increases were inferior to those realised in enterprise agreements negotiated across the Commonwealth public service and the major banks so far this year. At the start of September, Commonwealth Bank agreed to give staff earning up to A$100,000 a 5.25 per cent pay rise this year and employees in the next salary band (up to $125,000) a 5 per cent pay rise. CBA is boosting the pay of staff in both salary bands by 4.25 per cent in 2024 and 3.5 per cent in 2025. ANZ, NAB and Bendigo Bank have granted 5 per cent pay increases this year.