Between March 2022 and June 2026, Australian real wages — nominal wages adjusted for inflation — fell in 14 consecutive quarters. This is the longest sustained period of real wage decline since the ABS began collecting comparable data.
During the same period, Treasury ministers made 47 public statements describing wages as 'growing', 'recovering', or 'on the right track'. We reviewed each statement against the ABS Wage Price Index and CPI data available at the time of each statement.
Key findings:
- Quarters of real wage decline: 14 consecutive
- Cumulative real wage fall (Mar 2022 – Jun 2026): -4.2%
- Ministerial statements claiming wages were growing: 47
- Of those statements, made when real wages were falling: 41
- Average real wage loss per full-time worker over period: approximately $3,800/year
The government's standard response is that nominal wages are growing and that inflation is 'moderating'. Both statements are technically accurate. Neither addresses the lived experience of workers whose purchasing power has declined for three and a half years.