Four highly paid WorkSafe bosses to pocket huge pay rises

Multiple WorkSafe bosses will pocket large pay rises just months after Victorian taxpayers forked out $1.3b to rescue the financially troubled regulator.

Four WorkSafe bosses are set to pocket extraordinary pay rises. Picture: Alan Barber

Four highly paid WorkSafe bosses have had their extraordinary pay packets rubber-stamped just months after it emerged Victorian taxpayers forked out $1.3b to rescue the beleaguered regulator.

The Sunday Herald Sun can reveal that WorkSafe applied to the Victorian Independent Remuneration Tribunal to approve the pay packets of four of its senior staff above the normal limits for public servants.

The tribunal – which also determines whether to give politicians a pay rise – approved WorkSafe’s requests.

The tribunal determined that WorkSafe could pay its chief actuary $310,000 annually — more than $42,000 above counterparts in other agencies.

The executive director of insurance will be paid $390,542.

The Chief Information Security Officer’s $279,601 pay packet was also approved.

And the Premium and Self Insurance Director will be paid $285,000 — $18,000 above the normal limit for a bureaucrat of that level.

The pay packets come as WorkCover premiums soar, with the Andrews government hiking the average premium to 1.8 per cent.

In some cases, this has added tens of thousands of dollars to the growing costs of operating a small to medium business in Victoria.

There have also been major changes to the “broken” scheme, with burnout and stress no longer considered “injuries” that are eligible for weekly compensation payments.

Community and Public Sector Union state secretary Karen Batt said the decision to give pay rises to WorkSafe’s when compensation rights for injured workers were being reduced was a “disgrace”.

Community and Public Services Union State Secretary Karen Batt. said the decision was a “disgrace”.

“Are WorkSafe executives really that self-focused and that tone deaf?

“They argue a cost blowout and then they ask for this.

“Double standards are a poor look and will further damage the organisation’s brand and standing in the community.”

Opposition Finance spokeswoman, Jess Wilson, said WorkSafe was “one of Victoria’s poorest run agencies” and Victorians were right to question why its bosses were being paid so highly.

Opposition WorkCover and the TAC spokeswoman, Ann-Marie Hermans, said large salaries for WorkSafe executives would only worsen the financial position of Victoria’s broken WorkCover scheme.

“The priority for WorkSafe shouldn’t be ... executive pay, but on returning the scheme to financial stability and providing better support for injured workers to get back to their job,” she said.

A government spokesman said as a statutory authority, WorkSafe’s employment decisions are independent.

“We’re delivering fundamental reforms to make WorkCover sustainable for the benefit of injured workers and businesses,” he said.

A WorkSafe spokeswoman said: “WorkSafe provides appropriate remuneration for the skills, knowledge and experience of its people.”

WorkSafe said it only sought advice on a pay increase for three of the roles because the chief information security officer is a shared role with the TAC, who asked for the review.