Rachel Lang
Millions of Australians look set to receive a pay rise after the nation elected Labor leader Anthony Albanese as the next Prime Minister.
Albanese will be sworn in as the new leader of Australia today (May 23), becoming the nation’s fourth Labor leader to take the party from opposition to government since World War II.
During his election campaign, Albanese promised Aussies that he would raise the minimum wage.
Minimum wage currently sits at $20.33 an hour, with the Labor leader vowing to push the Fair Work Commission to lift the minimum wage by 5.1 per cent.
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This change is designed to keep minimum wage in line with inflation and to stop everyday Aussies from 'moving backwards'.
"We have a government that has low wage growth as a key feature of their economic architecture. They've said that," Albanese said in the lead-up to election day, as per the Daily Mail.
Fair Work reviews minimum wage annually.
If the change goes through, more than 2.7 million Aussies will benefit.
"You should be able to pay your rent, to buy food, to get by, and the Fair Work Commission should bear that in mind in the decision that they make," said Albanese.
"Labor has a plan to lift wages and that is what we will do."
Albanese's promise to raise the minimum wage came after he refused to back the Australian Council of Trade Unions in their bid for a 5.5 per cent increase.
A 5.5 per cent bump would make the minimum wage increase higher than the inflation rate.
His pledge prompted panic from the Liberals, with former Prime Minister Scott Morrison labelling Albanese a 'loose unit'.
The former PM was apparently unaware that the phrase is used as a positive moniker for people who like to let go and have a good time.
Morrison argued that the now-incumbent PM's move would see an increase of inflation and interest rates.
"It would threaten the strong wage growth we have had in employment, and ultimately it would force small businesses potentially out of business altogether," Morrison said, according to news.com.au.
"As a Prime Minister you can’t just go around making stuff up and thoughtlessly think that people can respect you when you just make these sorts of careless comments on the economy.
"What he said yesterday puts a chain reaction in place, dominoes falling that lead to higher cost of living."