ACT public servants reject government pay and conditions offer

Public servants in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) have rejected the government's latest pay and conditions offer. In a ballot regarding the ACT Public Sector Enterprise Agreement 2026-2029, 63 per cent of the 5,928 eligible workers voted against the proposal.

The rejected offer included a 9 per cent pay increase spread over three years, alongside conditional cost-of-living payments. These payments would have provided $600 if the annual Consumer Price Index (CPI) reached 3.5 per cent, increasing to $1,000 if inflation hit 4 per cent.

Other components of the deal included expanded parental leave, an increase in the personal leave cap to 10 days without evidence, and a new clause regarding the use of artificial intelligence in the workplace.

Maddy Northam, regional secretary for the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU), stated that the offer was “not enough” and called for a fairer deal that recognizes the value of public sector workers. Public Service Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith previously defended the package as a sustainable and competitive outcome that maintains the ACT Public Service as one of the highest-paid in the country.