Australian Prime Minister is urging states to push ahead with reopening despite COVID-19 outbreaks

“We always said that we were not going for eradication of the virus. Other economies tried that and their economy was far more damaged than ours. And so we have to ensure that we can run our economy, run our lives, run our communities, alongside this virus.” [Australian Prime Minister & Liberal MP for Cook Scott Morrison speaking on ABC radio program “PM”, 22 June 2020]

Financial Review, 22 June 2020:

A fresh outbreak of coronavirus in Victoria should not stop moves to reopen the economy, according to Scott Morrison, as one state delayed plans to reopen its borders and others contemplated new travel restrictions.

With Victoria recording a spike in cases because of what experts said was tardy adherence to safety protocols, thousands living within six local government jurisdictions were told not to leave their area unless essential.  

As the state introduced the toughest COVID-19 measures currently in Australia in an effort to contain the spike, the Prime Minister agreed it was a "wake-up call" but said setbacks were anticipated when he announced more than a month ago that the states were to reopen their economies by July. 

"This is part of living with COVID-19. And we will continue on with the process of opening up our economy and getting people back into work,'' Mr Morrison said.....

This was Scott Morrison at his uncaring, bullying best last Monday.

So what does "living with COVID-19" actually mean?

Well for 104 people it meant death, with 3 elderly victims dying at home and 30 in nursing homes.

It means there are still active COVID-19 cases in 4 Australian states and some people are still becoming sick enough to require an intensive care hospital bed.

Living with COVID-19 also means community transmission of the disease remains an issue in Australia, as well as people entering/exiting the country while infected.

The pandemic growth may have significanly slowed in Australia but it has not stopped, every day the average number of confirmed COVID-19 cases grow by around 12 people.

All this clearly indicates that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is not passively responding to successive state public health orders. What was happening is that collectively we had gone to great lengths to avoid coming into contact with this deadly virus thereby avoiding spreading COVID-19 disease.

When this collective action begins to fragment as more and more businesses, entertainment and sporting venues open, state borders are no longer closed and more international flights are allowed into the country, the virus which lives only to mindlessly replicate in as many human bodies as possible will quickly begin to infect larger numbers of people again.

It is highly likely that the resultant disease growth rate will not be able to be described as a "spike" or "setback". For Scott Morrison is stubborn. He will force the states and territories, along with communities and families, to keep exposure to the virus at a dangerously high level simply because he intends to open up the economy and go full bore ahead by July.

So why does the economy have to 'open' in July? 

Not because Morrison really cares about one of his favourite slogans, "jobs and growth". No, 'Emperor' Scott is afraid his own party and its financial backers will finally realise that he has no clothes and the economy is that scrap of cloth he is clutching to cover his nakedness.

It's all about hanging on to personal political power and his lucrative salary as prime minister - and he doesn't care how many people have to die or become chronically ill in order to achieve this.

When a powerful 77 year-old legal figure is finally revealed as a serial sexual harasser in the workplace

The Sydney Morning Herald,  22 June 2020:

Justice Dyson Heydon arrives at the Royal Commission into trade unions in 2015 in Sydney,CREDIT: BEN RUSHTON

Former High Court Justice Dyson Heydon, one of the nation’s pre-eminent legal minds, sexually harassed six young female associates, an independent inquiry by the court has found.

A Herald investigation has also uncovered further allegations from senior legal figures of predatory behaviour by Mr Heydon, including a judge who claims that he indecently assaulted her. The women claim that Mr Heydon’s status as one of the most powerful men in the country protected him from being held to account for his actions.

The High Court inquiry was prompted by two of the judge’s former associates notifying the Chief Justice Susan Kiefel in March 2019 that they had been sexually harassed by Mr Heydon.

“We are ashamed that this could have happened at the High Court of Australia,” said Chief Justice Kiefel in a statement. She confirmed that the lengthy investigation found that “the Honourable Dyson Heydon, AC, QC” harassed six former staff members.

“The findings are of extreme concern to me, my fellow justices, our chief executive and the staff of the court,” said the Chief Justice.

Chief Justice Kiefel has personally apologised to the six women, five of them Mr Heydon’s associates, saying “their accounts of their experiences at the time have been believed”.

Dyson Heydon was on the High Court bench from 2003-13 and in 2014 was appointed by then Prime Minister Tony Abbott to run the royal commission into trade union governance and corruption.

Mr Heydon denied the claims via his lawyers Speed and Stracey who issued a statement.....

“Dyson Heydon was one of the most powerful men in the country,” said Josh Bornstein, the women’s lawyer and a principal with law firm Maurice Blackburn in Melbourne. “As the independent investigation makes clear, he is also a sex pest. At the same time he was dispensing justice in the highest court in Australia’s legal system, he was [engaged in] sexual harassment.”

Vivienne Thom, the former Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, interviewed a dozen witnesses, including five former associates. Dr Thom’s report found that the evidence “demonstrates a tendency by Mr Heydon to engage in a pattern of conduct of sexual harassment” which included unwelcome touching, attempting to kiss the women and taking them into his bedroom.

A Herald investigation can reveal that Mr Heydon’s predatory behaviour was an “open secret” in legal and judicial circles. Not only did he prey on his young associates during his decade on the High Court until his mandatory retirement at 70 in 2013, other females in the profession suffered at his hands.....

Read the full article here.

The Guardian, 22 June 2020:

“At the time that this sexual harassment occurred, Dyson Heydon was in his 60s, a conservative judge, a prominent Catholic and a married man,” Bornstein said. 

“The women he employed were in their early 20s and often straight out of university. He was one of the most powerful men in the country, who could make or break their future careers in the law. 

Bornstein said there was an “extreme power imbalance” between Heydon and the young women. 

There was no clear avenue for women to complain about such conduct, he said. 

“The fear of his power and influence meant that the women did not feel able to come forward until recently,” he said.

STATEMENT BY THE HON SUSAN MEFEL AC,CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA (PDF)

UPDATE 

The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 June 2020: 

The Herald and The Age can now reveal claims about his behaviour extend to Britain where he is the subject of allegations, including inappropriate touching. 

Following his mandatory retirement from the High Court in 2013 aged 70, Dyson Heydon sought out a teaching position at the prestigious English university, where he had studied on a Rhodes scholarship in 1964. 

His three-year appointment at the Faculty of Law was greeted with excitement within the university, according to documents released under freedom of information laws...... 

Mr Heydon's lectures were scheduled to occur early each year from 2014 to 2016 inclusive. 

However, allegations about his behaviour would cast a dark shadow over Mr Heydon’s tenure. 

"My first introduction to him was that all the Australian law students at Oxford called him 'Dirty Dyson', that seemed to be the moniker he had widely," one former student said. 

One of Mr Heydon’s postgraduate students, whom the Herald and The Age have chosen not to name, was so upset and angry about Mr Heydon’s harassment of her in the Bodleian Library, that she complained to the university. 

The university decided not to renew Mr Heydon’s visiting professorship. In heavily redacted documents released to the Herald and The Age under FOI, the reason for the university's decision was not apparent. 

"The Personnel Committee has already taken a decision that Dyson Heydon should not be renewed," stated Oxford Law Faculty Dean Anne Davies in an email dated June 1, 2016. "We have written to tell him this."

The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 June 2020:

The ACT's Director of Public Prosecutions has recommended the Australian Federal Police investigate former High Court justice Dyson Heydon over allegations of sexual harassment following a damning investigation commissioned by the court.....

The Sydney Morning Herald, 25 June 2020:

Ms Coutts told the investigator she was worried that Justice Heydon "who was then a large and strong man" may try to harass her friend again. 

Ms Coutts told the investigator called in to conduct the independent inquiry, Dr Vivienne Thom, that she informed Justice McHugh of his colleague's alleged behaviour. 

According to the report, Justice McHugh allegedly replied: "Well Sharona, it's not easy to shock me these days but you have just truly shocked me." 

Ms Coutts said the following day, after further discussions with Justice McHugh, that he left the chambers, returning later to tell her: "I've told the Chief. It's his court. He has to deal with this." 

It is not known what steps were taken by then Chief Justice Murray Gleeson about Justice Heydon's behaviour. Mr McHugh declined to participate in the investigation. When contacted by the Herald and The Age, Mr Gleeson, now retired from the bench, said: "I am unwilling to comment". Mr McHugh, also retired from the bench, did not respond to emails and phone messages..... 

A group of the most senior female barristers in NSW have lodged a complaint with the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner, following allegations of sexual harassment and indecent assault against Mr Heydon. The 14 silks took their action following the revelation in the Herald that a High Court investigation found Mr Heydon had sexually harassed six former associates of the court. None of the female barristers making the complaint allege they themselves were the subject of inappropriate behaviour by Mr Heydon. 

The statutory body, which acts as the professional watchdog, has powers to investigate Mr Heydon's alleged misconduct. It can determine whether Mr Heydon is a "fit and proper person" under the official admission rules for the legal profession. It can also take disciplinary action against a barrister, or commence disciplinary proceedings in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. In the most serious cases, a practitioner can be disbarred. 

Complaints to the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner are confidential. 

The move came as the NSW Bar Association president Tim Game SC released a strongly-worded message warning "barristers who engage in sexual harassment can be investigated and disciplined for professional misconduct".

Morrison Government's class warfare sees this hard right group closing the door to students from low income families and cutting funding to universities

MORRISON GOVERNMENT SPIN

SBS News, 20 June 2020:

Mr Tehan outlined the coalition's latest plan for rejigging university funding in a speech to the National Press Club on Friday afternoon. He is offering to increase the number of university places by 39,000 over the next three years, rising to 100,000 more by 2030. 

The coalition had effectively capped places over the past couple of years by freezing its funding at 2018 levels. 

The trade-off in the new deal is changing what students and taxpayers pay. 

A three-year humanities degree would more than double in cost for students, from about $20,000 now to $43,500. The government's contribution would drop to $3300. 

 Fees for law degrees, typically four years, would jump from $44,620 now to $58,000. 

Conversely, the government would contribute more and charge students less for courses it says are more likely to lead to jobs. 

Agriculture and maths fees would drop from nearly $28,600 over three years to $11,100. 

Fees would also be cut for teaching, nursing, clinical psychology, science, health, architecture, IT, engineering and English courses.....

THE REALITY

From January 2021 students entering Humanities courses such as Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts & Business, Bachelor of International Studies, Bachelor of Politics Philosophy & Economics, Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Media and Communications), Bachelor of Education, Bachelor of Arts/
Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Languages), fees will more than double, putting them alongside law and commerce in the highest price band of $14,500 a year or est. $43,500 for a completed degree. Making these courses more expensive than studying medicine.

The Australian, 22 June 2020:

Universities will be paid less to teach courses such as maths and engineering under the Morrison government’s overhaul of higher education funding — despite those programs being promoted by Education Minister Dan Tehan as post-pandemic job creators. 

Education Department data shows the commonwealth will cut university funding for each enrolment in those courses while also cutting how much those students pay to study. 

The reforms are intended to push students towards high-­priority courses such as maths, teaching, science and engineering by lowering how much students, through the HECS-HELP loan scheme, pay. 

Universities currently receive $28,958 a year for each science course enrolment, made up of $19,260 paid by the student through the HECS-HELP loan scheme and $9698 from the commonwealth. 

Under the new system, however, students will contribute $7700 and the commonwealth will pay $16,500, leaving universities with $4758 less revenue for each science student enrolled. 

Universities will lose a similar amount for each student enrolled in an engineering course under the reforms announced by Mr Tehan on Friday, and lose $3444 per student in an agriculture subject, one of the key areas where the government is hoping to drive enrolment growth. 

That’s because while the commonwealth is increasing its payment per student from $24,446 to $27,000, that does not compensate for the fall in student contributions from $9698 to $3700. 

Frank Larkins, a researcher at Melbourne University’s Centre for Higher Education, said the fall in overall revenues per student in high-priority areas was likely to make it more difficult for universities to teach more students in those job-creating subjects. 

“It appears there are two mess­ages here. The government wants students to go into nursing, teaching and STEM subjects, but they also think those courses are overfunded,” Professor Larkins told The Australian on Sunday. 

“Agriculture — one of the areas they want more students — would retain its funding in the present scheme, but it’s cut by 17 per cent in this new one. It’s a curious situation. 

“The areas of study we are touting as the national interest are actually diminishing under these changes. 

Every university will have a different reaction, but these changes are almost disguising a cut in funding for some of these courses the government is promoting.”....

@RichAFerguson

ABC News, 21 June 2020: 

If you were thinking about starting a university degree in the future, you've got a new fee structure to take into account. The Government has announced an overhaul of the university fee system, slashing the price of courses it says are more likely to get you a job and hiking up fees for courses in the humanities. 

The changes will mainly apply to future students, with no current student to pay increased fees for the duration of their degree. 

However, if you're a current student enrolled in a course that is getting cheaper, you'll pay less from next year. 

Many of you told us the changes will affect your choice of study, and for some it will deter you from going to university altogether.... 

Robert H: "My son is in grade 11 and he picked his subjects for grades 10 to 12 at the end of grade 9. So even if he wanted to pivot towards the cheaper STEM degrees, he would need to go back in time to the end of year 9 to reselect his subjects. So much for a fair go." 

Monika O: "This is terrible. We need to encourage a variety of careers as we all have different gifts and abilities. It's not justified to discriminate and "punish" people who choose to study arts and humanities. These topics encourage critical thinking skills and communications skills — all much needed abilities. 

David D: "This an appalling idea. Prejudicing young people because their ability and passion are in the humanities, and rewarding those whose ability and passion just happens to be what business thinks they require now for jobs … Many businesses are actually crying out for workers with critical thinking and creative skills.".... 

Emma J: "Doubling humanities degree costs is appalling. These are the only degrees where you are taught to think for yourselves and where ideas and innovation are encouraged. Without social and political sciences and history and Indigenous studies, we're going to have a workforce which can only follow rules and can't think for themselves." Shane H: "Two of the most valued skills employers want is the ability to think critically and emotional intelligence. How many STEM subjects teach that?" 

Carolyn J: "Humanities subjects are foundational and help to produce people who understand the history and nuances of our society. They teach people how to communicate ideas, how to analyse language, image and thought. The arts themselves provide beauty, expression, reflection, critique, examination. They are vocations — sometimes compulsions — not job choices." 

Johny M: "More than doubling the cost of humanities degrees is not only sad, but grossly unfair. They teach critical thinking, research skills, and broaden our worldview. It is easy to rip into them for not being 'job specific', but that ignores they are the scaffold to everything we know about our society." Stefan P: This is absolutely tragic. The choice of which course to pursue within higher education should be entirely dependent on a student's desires, not their financial situation and the whims of the economy. Besides which, if the Federal Government acknowledges the difficulty of finding work as an arts student, then saddling them with even more debt is simply counterintuitive." 

Matt B: "I'm a Medsci student progressing into medicine, arguably an 'in demand' degree. However … the arts/humanities allows scientists to put the research in perspective of humanity and thus allows us to better communicate to the public and (science-ignorant) governments why we do what we do. Arts isn't a second thought; it's a priority, more so than learning chemistry and biology is for a doctor, because without the arts, we cannot communicate and appreciate the meaning of cancer beyond it being a mutation of cells.".... 

Lili K: "I'm just about to finish my honours degree in politics, and it has been the most rewarding and interesting years of my life. I know if this price hike happened when I was at my poor public country high school, I would have had to take a different path."....

 Anna G: "I have an arts degree. I work for the Government in a relatively senior role. My degree gave me essential critical-thinking, analytical and writing skills that equip me to do my job daily. It's frustrating to know that the Government thinks that my degree isn't 'job focused' when I use it to support and deliver its policies and programs.".... 

 Lana G: I am a business/politics (humanities) student. I am the first in my family to attend university, and all this does is make university (for the most part) unattainable. My degree is now going to be on par with the cost of a medical degree … Poorer kids are going to move away from economics, humanities and law."..... 

The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 June 2020: 

 The government will fund an extra 39,000 places by 2023 – an increase of about 6 per cent – as the recession prompts more school leavers to stay on in education (and avoid taking a gap year), but will compensate for this by cutting the amount of its funding per student. 

 According to calculations by Professor David Peetz, of Griffith University (whose former job as a senior federal bureaucrat helps him find where the bodies are buried), the government will cut its funding by an annual $1883 per student, with the average increase in tuition fees of $675 per student reducing the net loss to universities to $1208 per student. (The fee changes won't apply to existing students, however.).... 

Professor Ian Jacobs, boss of UNSW, who points to the perverse incentives the changes will create (assuming the Senate is mad enough to pass them). Unis will be tempted to offer most places in those courses with the widest gap between the high government-set tuition fee and the cost of running the course. They'll be pushing BAs harder than ever. 

This, of course, is exactly the way you'd expect the vice-chancellors to behave when you've taken government-owned and regulated agencies, spent 30 years pursuing a bipartisan policy of cutting their federal funding (from 86 per cent to 28 per cent of total receipts, in the case of Sydney University) and pretending they've been privatised.

Grattan Institute report indicates that with 643 active COVID-19 cases remaining in Australia, everyone needs to keep social distancing to avoid a viral surge

The Grattan Institute, 21 June 2020:

Australia has not yet won the battle against COVID-19, and coming out of lockdown risks a second wave of infections. 

Grattan Institute modelling shows that reopening shops, schools, and workplaces heightens the risk of new infections, especially if people think the threat is over and ignore social distancing rules. 

Workplaces are particularly high risk and should be re-opened slowly, with as many people as possible continuing to work from home to minimise the potential for the virus to spread. 

Schools should enforce social distancing policies, and close if a COVID-19 case is detected. 

Mandatory quarantining of international arrivals must remain in place. 

And if a second wave of mass infections breaks out, governments will have to reimpose lockdowns. 

It’s dangerous for people to think this fight is over. 

The nature of the virus hasn’t changed – our behaviour has. 

If Australians go back to a pre-COVID normal, the virus could spread quickly and wildly, like it has elsewhere. 

Some of Australia’s states have effectively eliminated local transmission of COVID-19, and are keeping their borders closed to states where it persists. 

States should maintain different restrictions if they have different rates of local transmission. 

Restrictions are obviously needed much less in states which have effectively eliminated the virus from their local population. 

Australia should learn lessons from the way the health system responded to the pandemic. 

Telehealth has been embraced by doctors and patients; it should now be expanded to give more people quicker access to care. 

Mental health and hospital-in-the-home services should be bolstered. 

And the federal and state governments need to strengthen supply chains to ensure adequate supplies of personal protective equipment and ventilators in the event of a second wave of COVID-19 infections. 

If Australia gets this transition to a ‘new normal’ wrong, we won’t benefit from the overdue health system changes that the crisis forced on us. 

That would be another tragedy on top of the trauma caused by the pandemic itself.

On the morning of 21 June 2020 there were still 643 active COVID-19 cases in Australia with 25 of these new cases confirmed overnight.

Only South Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory appear to have had no active COVID-19 cases on 21 June.

Australia's current COVID-19 infection growth rate was 1.12% which is 0.13% above the growth rate required to reduce infections towards zero.

Grattan Institute Report No. 2020-09 recommendations for coming out of lockdown:

1. Maintain social distancing efforts while there are active COVID-19 cases locally 

∙ Maintain high levels of testing, contact tracing, and isolation. 

∙ Workplaces should be re-opened slowly, with as many people as possible continuing to work from home. Minimise the number of people interacting in workplaces where possible. 

∙ Enforce social distancing in workplaces. 

∙ Workers who show symptoms linked to COVID-19 must not be allowed to go to work. Their employers must allow them to work from home where possible. Governments should provide support for workers who do not have sick leave entitlements. 

∙ Schools must be closed, and rigorous contact tracing implemented, whenever a COVID-19 case is detected at the school. 

∙ Policies limiting patrons in shops should be maintained if local transmission of COVID-19 continues in particular cities. 

∙ People in the community must continue to take social distancing precautions. Where there are active cases, the government should encourage people to wear masks in public. 

2. Ramp up local lockdowns when outbreaks occur 

∙ State governments must be prepared to reimpose lockdowns to control major outbreaks. 

∙ Local lockdowns should be enacted to control local outbreaks.

3. When there are no active COVID-19 cases in Australia 

∙ Capacity constraints on workplaces, shops, and hospitality can be removed. People can start to move freely within and between states. 

∙ Testing must remain a routine part of life. If local cases are identified, contact tracers must be at the ready, and widespread testing should restart in affected areas. 

∙ Current mandatory quarantining of people arriving from overseas must remain in place. 

∙ Quarantine exemptions could be made with other countries, such as New Zealand, that also have no active COVID-19 cases and that have effective international arrival protocols in place.

Horses pulling cats for rich white men - that's the poor and vulnerable in Australia

https://youtu.be/c7PQA-dyVlo

Prevalence of amphetamine possession and/or use in the NSW Northern Rivers region

On 7 May 2019 The Sydney Morning Herald reported that:

Amphetamine possession in NSW has risen by 250 per cent over the past decade….

The alarming statistics, which also showed possession in some parts of the state had skyrocketed by up to 1000 per cent, were presented on Tuesday at the special commission of inquiry into the drug ice commissioned by Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

The following statistics indicate the prevelance of amphetamine use and possession in the NSW Northern Rivers region in 2020.

NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOSCAR):

NSW RECORDED CRIME STATISTICS APRIL 2019-MARCH 2020

Tweed LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 150.9

Byron Bay LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 147.5

Clarence Valley LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 135.

Lismore City LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 120.9

Richmond Valley LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 111.1

Ballina LGA:

Possession &/o use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 79.6

Kyogle LGA:

Possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population – 45.1

The two year trend and annual percentage change for all seven Northern Rivers local government areas appears to be stable.

By way of general comparison, Coffs Harbour LGA on the mid-North Coast had a possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population of 177.7, Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA a rate of 132.3, Newcastle LGA 127.4, Sydney LGA 363.8 (up 25.4% on two year trend & annual percentage change) and New South Wales 103.1 (up 12.8% on two year trend & annual percentage change). 

After the COVID-19 global pandenic was declared on 11 March 2020 the six week period after social distancing was imposed (15 March – 26 April, 2020) saw overall drug possession fall by 4% in New South Wales.

Note:

Rate per 100,000 head of population does not necessarily represent a high number of incidents. For example, in 2019 the Clarence Valley possession &/or use of amphetamines rate per 100,000 head of population was 147.2 based on a total of 76 recorded incidents.

Donald Trump's manipulation of social media reaches dangerous heights

pic.twitter.com/vnRpk0zl5y

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020

There was no CNN footage showing an African-American child running away from a 'white' child as purportedly shown in this Donald Trump tweet. 

From start to finish the video in this particular tweet has first been manipulated to distort and then later truncated without the original crediting source.

Twitter labelled this "Manipulated media" with the explanation:
- In September 2019, CNN reported on a viral video about a friendship between two toddlers
- On Thursday, the president shared a version of the video which many journalists confirmed was edited and doctored with a fake CNN chryon.

A parent of one of the then toddlers seen in the Trump-manipulated home video has since forced Twitter and Facebook to completely remove this video.

As Australian Prime Minister and Liberal MP for Cook Scott Morrison almost slavishly follows Trump's election campaign playbook, Australian voters can expect similar Goebbels-like manipulation of images and videos over the next 14 to 27 months, as the milestone for the last possible date for the next federal general election of the House of Represenatives & half of the Senate arrives.

Fair Work Commission announces a staged 1.75% increase to Australian minimum wages. Group 1 from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2020, Group 2 from 1 November 2020 & Group 3 from 1 February 2021. Which group are you in?

Fair Work Commission, media release, 19 June 2020:

The Fair Work Commission has announced a 1.75% increase to minimum wages. This will apply to all award wages.

Increases to awards will start on 3 different dates for different groups of awards. See When will my award increase for information on when the awards will increase.

Most employees are covered by an award. If you’re not sure which award applies, use Find my award.

For anyone not covered by an award or an agreement, the new national minimum wage will be $753.80 per week or $19.84 per hour. This applies from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2020.

You can read the detailed decision on the Fair Work Commission’s website.

What do you need to do?

While we’re working to update our website and tools with more information and the new rates, you can:

• subscribe to get email updates and we’ll let you know when the new minimum rates are available in our pay tools
• keep checking our website for updates.

If you’re registered with My account you can subscribe to updates and manage your subscriptions in your account.

Who does the increase apply to?

The 1.75% increase applies to the national minimum wage and will apply to minimum rates in awards in 3 stages. See When will my award increase for information on when the awards will increase.

If you’re covered by a registered agreement, you should check it to see whether this increase affects you.

The increase doesn’t affect employees who already get paid more than their new minimum wage.

Interaction with the JobKeeper payment

The new minimum wage also applies to any work an employee performs while they're in the JobKeeper scheme, if they get their pay rate from an award or the national minimum wage. See JobKeeper and the Annual Wage Review 2020 on our JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme page for more information.

What happens next?

The Commission will issue draft determinations and orders about how this decision affects awards. It will then update the pay rates in each award.  We’re working on updates to our pay tools, information and resources with the new rates.

When will my award increase?

The increase to awards will happen in 3 groups.

Group 1 Awards - from 1 July 2020

• Frontline Heath Care & Social Assistance Workers
• Teachers and Child Care
• Other Essential Services

Group 2 Awards - from 1 November 2020

• Construction
• Manufacturing
• A range of other industries

Group 3 Awards - from 1 February 2021

• Accommodation and Food Services
• Arts and Recreation Services
• Aviation
• Retail
• Tourism

See below for a complete list of awards in each group:

• Group 1
• Group 2
• Group 3

Group 1

The new minimum wages will start in the following awards from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2020.

• Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services Award
• Aged Care Award
• Ambulance and Patient Transport Industry Award
• Banking, Finance and Insurance Award
• Cemetery Industry Award
• Children’s Services Award
• Cleaning Services Award
• Corrections and Detention (Private Sector) Award
• Educational Services (Schools) General Staff Award
• Educational Services (Teachers) Award
• Electrical Power Industry Award
• Fire Fighting Industry Award
• Funeral Industry Award
• Gas Industry Award
• Health Professionals and Support Services Award
• Medical Practitioners Award
• Nurses Award
• Pharmacy Industry Award
• Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award
• State Government Agencies Award
• Water Industry Award

Group 2

The new minimum wages will start in the following awards from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 November 2020.

• Aluminium Industry Award
• Animal Care and Veterinary Services Award
• Aquaculture Industry Award
• Architects Award
• Asphalt Industry Award
• Black Coal Mining Industry Award
• Book Industry Award
• Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award
• Building and Construction General On-site Award
• Business Equipment Award
• Car Parking Award
• Cement, Lime and Quarrying Award
• Clerks—Private Sector Award
• Coal Export Terminals Award
• Concrete Products Award
• Contract Call Centres Award
• Cotton Ginning Award
• Dredging Industry Award
• Educational Services (Post-Secondary Education) Award
• Electrical, Electronic and Communications Contracting Award
• Food, Beverage and Tobacco Manufacturing Award
• Gardening and Landscaping Services Award
• Graphic Arts, Printing and Publishing Award
• Higher Education Industry-Academic Staff-Award
• Higher Education Industry-General Staff-Award
• Horticulture Award
• Hydrocarbons Field Geologists Award
• Hydrocarbons Industry (Upstream) Award
• Joinery and Building Trades Award
• Journalists Published Media Award
• Labour Market Assistance Industry Award
• Legal Services Award
• Local Government Industry Award
• Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award
• Marine Towage Award
• Maritime Offshore Oil and Gas Award
• Market and Social Research Award
• Meat Industry Award
• Mining Industry Award
• Miscellaneous Award
• Mobile Crane Hiring Award
• Oil Refining and Manufacturing Award
• Passenger Vehicle Transportation Award
• Pastoral Award
• Pest Control Industry Award
• Pharmaceutical Industry Award
• Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award
• Port Authorities Award
• Ports, Harbours and Enclosed Water Vessels Award
• Poultry Processing Award
• Premixed Concrete Award
• Professional Diving Industry (Industrial) Award
• Professional Employees Award
• Rail Industry Award
• Real Estate Industry Award
• Road Transport (Long Distance Operations) Award
• Road Transport and Distribution Award
• Salt Industry Award
• Seafood Processing Award
• Seagoing Industry Award
• Security Services Award
• Silviculture Award
• Stevedoring Industry Award
• Storage Services and Wholesale Award
• Sugar Industry Award
• Supported Employment Services Award
• Surveying Award
• Telecommunications Services Award
• Textile, Clothing, Footwear and Associated Industries Award
• Timber Industry Award
• Transport (Cash in Transit) Award
• Waste Management Award
• Wool Storage, Sampling and Testing Award

Group 3

The new minimum wages will start in the following awards from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 February 2021.

• Air Pilots Award
• Aircraft Cabin Crew Award
• Airline Operations-Ground Staff Award
• Airport Employees Award
• Alpine Resorts Award
• Amusement, Events and Recreation Award
• Commercial Sales Award
• Dry Cleaning and Laundry Industry Award
• Fast Food Industry Award
• Fitness Industry Award
• General Retail Industry Award
• Hair and Beauty Industry Award
• Horse and Greyhound Training Award
• Hospitality Industry (General) Award
• Live Performance Award
• Mannequins and Models Award
• Marine Tourism and Charter Vessels Award
• Nursery Award
• Professional Diving Industry (Recreational) Award
• Racing Clubs Events Award
• Racing Industry Ground Maintenance Award
• Registered and Licensed Clubs Award
• Restaurant Industry Award
• Sporting Organisations Award
• Travelling Shows Award
• Vehicle Repair, Services and Retail Award
• Wine Industry Award