A union leader has criticised the federal government for underpaying the prime minister while public servants receive more than a million dollars in salary. Jeff Lapidos, head of a branch of the Australian Services Union representing Tax Office staff, said the prime minister’s base wage of $622,000 is vastly lower than the salaries of some senior public servants.
Guardian Australia reported that 11 public servants earned over $1 million, with one receiving more than $1.5 million. Lapidos, who has spent more than a decade campaigning for better pay and conditions, argued that public service salaries should reflect the value of work rather than common pay levels. He cited a 9.55% decline in the real value of Australian Tax Office salaries over 13 years as evidence of exploitation by successive governments.
Meanwhile, new Greens leader David Shoebridge pledged that ordinary party members would have a say in the next leadership decision. He announced a conversation across branches and membership, stating that members should be able to influence the party room vote that selects the federal leader. Shoebridge said the change would take place before the next leadership decision in the current parliamentary term.
Other headlines this week include a federal crackdown on visa‑hopping by international students, migration agents and lawyers, a NSW police investigation into two alleged pre‑meditated home‑invasion attacks, and an Israeli embassy condemnation of online conspiracy theories about a flydubai incident. Additional stories covered Medibank’s dual court actions over a data hack, ANZ’s decision to end its long‑standing relationship with auditor KPMG, and the City of Yarra mayor’s acquittal of an unlawful assault charge.
