“Most appalling” to blame lowest-paid workers for inflation: Tony Burke

Australia’s lowest-paid workers shouldn’t be blamed for inflation, the employment minister said, after the industrial umpire announced a bump to the minimum wage.

The Fair Work Commission on Monday decided to lift both minimum wages and awards by 3.75% a year, giving full-time workers an extra $33 every week based on a new hourly rate of $24.10.

The changes will affect about one in five employees, or about 2.6 million people, from July.

Critics say it will make it harder to wrangle inflation back into the two to three percent target band, from a current 3.6%.

However, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Tony Burke said the lowest-paid Australians, who received a 5.75%