RBA pay disclosures highlight wage dispute as staff press for higher increases

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RBA wage dispute highlighted

Highlights

RBA's annual report discloses governor Michele Bullock's total remuneration for 2025-26 at A$1.22 million, with 76 senior executives and 222 highly paid staff.
RBA staff seek an 11 per cent pay rise over three years with an inflation-protection mechanism, while management offers 9.5 per cent, following previous staff rejection.
RBA workforce grew 8 per cent to 2,201 employees amid transformation programs, with the pay dispute unfolding against a 4.7 per cent unemployment rate and potential further rate hikes.

Executive pay and staff negotiations

As reported by ABC News, citing the RBA's annual report, governor Michele Bullock receives total remuneration of A$1.22 million in 2025-26, including a base salary of A$1.01 million, while deputy governor Andrew Hauser receives A$955,033 and assistant governors receive between A$743,000 and A$868,000 each.

The central bank's chief operating officer receives total remuneration of A$905,543. The report also shows the RBA has 76 senior executives and a further 222 highly paid staff.

At the same time, lower-ranked employees are seeking an 11 per cent pay rise over three years, along with an inflation-protection mechanism that would trigger further increases if wages fail to keep pace with prices. The RBA is offering 9.5 per cent over three years, after a similar proposal was rejected by a majority of staff in July.

The Finance Sector Union says negotiations have been running since late last year and that the central bank has not shifted from its original offer. After the RBA lifted interest rates for the fourth time this year last month, Bullock emailed staff urging them to back the latest proposal, with voting due to close on Monday at 5pm.

Workforce growth and policy backdrop

The annual report says the RBA has 2,201 employees, equivalent to 2,082 full-time staff, and that its workforce has grown 8 per cent over the past 12 months. The bank says the increase reflects extra resources needed for transformation and change programs, with additional hiring concentrated in technology and corporate support functions.

The pay dispute is unfolding as Australia records a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 4.7 per cent, a level above the RBA's forecast for this stage of its rate-hiking cycle. Economists say the central bank may not have finished lifting rates.

At a fireside chat last month, Bullock said Australia may need unemployment of 5 per cent to bring inflation fully under control. She also says sustainable gains in real wages can only come from stronger productivity growth, which she argues the economy is struggling to deliver.

In our earlier coverage of executive pay trends at South Africa’s JSE Top 200 companies, we noted that CEO and CFO remuneration rose, with incentive awards increasing much faster than fixed pay. We also highlighted new governance rules requiring pay-ratio disclosures and introducing binding shareholder votes on remuneration, reflecting growing scrutiny of the gap between top earners and the broader workforce.

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