Highlights

  • Australian public sector employee jobs increase 2.3% between June 2025 and June 2026, the slowest annual rise since 2019–20.
  • Total cash wages and salaries reach AUD 266.1 billion, up 6.6%, compared with 7.8% growth in 2024–25.
  • Commonwealth jobs grow 1.0%, state government jobs rise 2.8%, and local government positions increase 0.6%.
  • Health care and social assistance adds 29,700 jobs, while its annual wage bill rises 8.5% to AUD 70.9 billion.

Australia’s public sector continued adding employee jobs in 2025–26, but the annual pace slowed to 2.3% between June 2025 and June 2026. That was the smallest increase since 2019–20. Meanwhile, total cash wages and salaries across Commonwealth, state and territory, and local governments reached AUD 266.1 billion. The annual wage bill increased 6.6%, compared with 7.8% in 2024–25, creating a picture of continued expansion at a more moderate pace.

Commonwealth and Local Hiring Record Sharp Moderation

The slowdown was especially visible in the Commonwealth and local government figures. Commonwealth employee jobs rose 1.0% in 2025–26, after 5.5% in 2024–25. Local government recorded 0.6% growth, compared with 2.0% a year earlier. State government employment rose 2.8%, slightly above the preceding year’s 2.7%. These contrasting rates show why the combined national employment measure slowed despite continued growth across all three government levels.

Wage Bill Increases Across All Levels of Government

Growth in aggregate cash wages and salaries also moderated. Commonwealth government wages and salaries rose 7.2%, compared with 9.4% in 2024–25. State government wage expenditure increased 6.6%, after 7.5%, while local government recorded 5.6% growth, compared with 7.1%. The AUD 266.1 billion total represents cash wages and salaries paid, not a measure of average individual pay rises. Changes in staffing, hours paid and other components also contribute to the movement in the wage bill.

Health Care Leads the Expansion

Three industries—public administration and safety, education and training, and health care and social assistance—accounted for nearly 90% of public sector jobs and wages. Health care and social assistance recorded the fastest growth among them, with jobs rising by 29,700, or 4.4%, to 669,800. Its wage bill grew AUD 5.5 billion, or 8.5%, reaching AUD 70.9 billion. Ongoing Demand for health and education services within state and territory governments contributed to the broader increase in public sector wage expenditure.

Education and Administration Add to the Total

Education and Training employment rose by 17,400 jobs, or 2.3%, to 790,800. Wages paid in the industry increased AUD 3.2 billion, or 5.2%, to AUD 64.6 billion. Public administration and safety added 4,600 jobs, a 0.5% rise, to reach 883,300, while its wage bill increased AUD 5.6 billion, or 6.2%, to AUD 96.5 billion. Together, the three industries account for a large share of the spending and employment changes captured during the year.

What the Figures Do—and Do Not—Measure

The employment data compare employee jobs at two June reference points, while the wages figures cover cash payments across the financial year. The wage bill can change with recruitment, working hours, periodic payments and pay levels. It should therefore not be read as an individual wage-growth rate. The 2025–26 results record continued public sector workforce and wage-bill growth, with a slower overall annual pace and uneven changes across government levels and industries.