Coronavirus: Annastacia Palaszczuk puts 2.5 per cent pay rise for state public servants ‘on hold’

Annastacia Palaszczuk says a 2.5 per cent pay rise for public servants has been put “on hold” amid anger over the plan.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced that a 2.5 per cent pay increase for state public servants has been put “on hold” amid widespread anger over the planned pay rise at a time when so many are out of work.

“Well, let me make it very clear. All of that is on hold,” she told Sunrise on Thursday morning.

“It’s on hold. We’ve got people out there who have lost their jobs. They’re hurting. And you know, we’ve got front line services out there, our nurses, our doctors, our firefighters, our police. They’re doing a great job for Queenslanders. But in this climate at the moment, everything must be put on hold.”

The Australian revealed on Wednesday that the state’s 224,000 public servants were set to receive pay rises as others in the workforce endure static income levels, wage cuts, reduced hours, unpaid stand-downs or lose jobs because of the economic impact of the corona­virus.

Workers across the Queensland public sector are participating in an “all-staff” ballot that opened last week to approve a 2.5 per cent wage increase, plus a one-off cash payment of $1250.

The increases, detailed in a proposed enterprise agreement between the Palaszczuk government and Together Queensland, the union representing state public servants, comes as some highly-paid business executives and sporting stars accept pay cuts of 20 to 50 per cent, forced on them by the COVID-triggered economic downturn.

Alex Scott, general secretary of Together Queensland, a branch of the Australian Services Union, had dismissed any suggestion state public servants’ pay rises should be postponed or cancelled, and said he did not expect the deal to be called off.

The government is the state’s largest employer, with 223,704 full-time positions and more than 500 corporate and media adviser positions, according to figures released last year. With employee costs accounting for 42 per cent of state government spending, the 2019-20 budget said public sector wages were expected to total $25.4bn in 2020, a 5.4 per cent increase on the previous 12 months.

On Thursday, the Premier also gave a “final warning” to people ignoring social distancing rules and said she supported a crackdown on people openly disregarding social distancing rules in a manner similar to harsh measures taken in NSW and Victoria.

“I said very clearly to the mayors when I spoke to them the other day that if people

weren’t complying with social distancing, we are going to have to crackdown because social distancing means 90 per cent of people have to be doing the right thing and going to the beach with all of your friends and mates is not on,” she said.

“So we’ve seen strong action about this in Victoria and in NSW. And I will tell you what. The mayors will not hesitate to take that strong action here in Queensland as well. So

final warning everyone.”

Ms Palaszczuk also addressed an AMA survey conducted in Queensland that revealed 70 per cent of the state’s doctors do not believe they have sufficient protective gear to treat coronavirus positive patients.

“Look, we have plenty of stockpile in the public sector. We will be making it available for the private sector as well. And plus there is a national stockpile....So you know, we’re a few weeks, if not months away from the peak and there’s going to be enough supply to get us through this,” she said.

“They are being very conservative with its use of course, because we know there’s going to be a big influx into our hospitals. So we have to save it for those crucial times. But there are ample supplies.”