The Prime Minister was right to be surprised by claims
public servants are getting 10% pay rises – because they
aren’t. Official figures show public service pay rose just
1.3 percent in the year to June, while prices rose 4.1
percent.
Christopher Luxon was caught out on Newstalk
ZB this morning when Mike Hosking put the SEEK Advertised
Salary Index to him, showing government advertised salaries
up 10 percent in the past year.
“We’re surprised too.
If public service workers had a 10 percent rise in the past
year, they wouldn’t be going on strike,” said Fleur
Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service
Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi.
“Ten
thousand workers from MBIE, MSD, DIA and other agencies
walked off the job on 9 September because the Government’s
offers are well below the rate of inflation. Workers at
Corrections have also rejected their pay offer. A 10 percent
rise would more than fix that. It just isn’t
real.”
SEEK measures what employers advertise for new
roles, not what public servants are actually paid. It
doesn’t publish the data behind its index, so nobody can say
what is driving the number. It could well be advertised jobs
for senior managers and specialists.
“This data tells
you nothing about the pay packets of the people who process
benefits, support exporters and keep civil defence
running.”
The official data does. The Labour
Cost Index analysis from the Public Service Commission
shows:
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– Public service pay rose 1.3 percent in the
year to June 2026
– Public sector pay rose 1.7
percent
– Private sector pay rose 2.0
percent
Even SEEK’s own figures show advertised pay
across all jobs rising 2.6 percent, well short of inflation.
Wellington, where much of the public service is based, had
the weakest annual growth of any region.
Motu
Economic and Public Policy Research reported in July
that public sector base salaries are on average 4 percent
lower than comparable private sector jobs. The gap widens
when total remuneration is counted, particularly for men and
for larger roles.
“What’s telling is the Prime
Minister’s first reaction: that a rise like that
‘shouldn’t be happening’. Workers going backwards on
their pay deserve better than a government whose instinct is
that public service pay rises are a problem,” said
Fitzsimons.
“And with the PM promising ‘radical
structural change’ for the public sector if elected to a
second term, these workers can see what is coming: more
cuts, more pressure, and pay that doesn’t keep up with the
cost of living.
“Public servants are doing it tough.
It’s time the Government did the right thing and paid them
fairly.”
Notes:
The Public Service
Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa
New Zealand’s largest trade union, representing and
supporting more than 95,000 workers across central
government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health
boards and community
groups.
