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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Jonathan Barrett Business editor

Fair Work abolishes junior pay rates for adult workers, with half a million young Australians to be paid more

McDonald’s sign outside restaurant
The decision by the Fair Work Commission’s full bench will boost the wages of about 500,000 workers at major retailers including Coles, Woolworths, McDonald’s and Hungry Jack’s. Photograph: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

Half a million young Australians working in the retail, fast food and pharmacy sectors are set for a wage increase after the Fair Work Commission abolished junior pay rates for those aged 18 and over.

The wage rises will be phased in over four years in a landmark change that unions compared to the introduction of equal pay for women in the 1970s.

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