The ACTU calls on the Reserve Bank of Australia to stop hurting workers with interest rate rises after its decision to raise rates yet again after a brief pause last month.
Today’s rise of 0.25% means 11 increases since May 2022, with last month’s pause providing next to no relief.
Working people are bearing the brunt of fixing inflation but the real driver is corporate profits fueled by excessive price rises.
There is no wage-price spiral. It’s time to cease interest rate rises and for corporate Australia to moderate their profits.
Quotes attributable to ACTU Secretary Sally McManus:
“This is a bad decision. Working people are under immense pressure and this will make it worse. Ordinary Australians are struggling to pay the bills every time they go to the supermarket, mortgages and rents have gone up an extraordinary amount as well.
“We can see inflation around the world coming down and that’s because it’s being driven by supply chain issues and by companies such as Qantas price gouging and putting up prices more than they need to. The Reserve Bank should be calling that out, and putting pressure on companies to stop price gouging.
“The Reserve Bank is a very long way from the lives of ordinary Australians, who need wage increases just to keep their heads above water. Increases to the minimum wage and award wages this year are now more urgent than ever.
“Between the RBA and big companies, the average Australian is bearing all the pain of a situation they did not cause and have no control over.”
“With inflation falling, household savings and spending plummeting, and the economy predicted to hit choppy waters, this is the wrong decision today.”
