Public servant wage freeze causes unrest in NSW Cabinet

Gladys Berejiklian’s decision to implement a wage freeze on New South Wales public servants has been likened to former premier Mike Baird’s controversial greyhound industry ban, Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell says. The NSW Premier announced the freeze on Wednesday, causing discontent within her own party over why essential workers such as police, nurses and teachers were not exempted from the freeze. Mr Clennell said some within cabinet have suggested the NSW government shelve the ANZ Stadium rebuild and the $1.5 billion Powerhouse Museum project to assist with funding concerns. “Many in cabinet, with speakers including Brad Hazzard and Rob Stokes, could not understand why police, nurses, teachers could not be exempted,” Mr Clennell said. “They also could not understand why recent senior executive public service increases had recently been granted and could not be reversed.” Sky News understands the proposal will be knocked back in the state’s upper house, with Shooters MP Robert Borsak telling Mr Clennell he would not support it. “He supports a wage freeze for those on 150k or more, not on those less. Mark Latham, the One Nation MP, also agrees that frontline workers should be exempt,” he said. “Berejiklian’s view is that where do you draw the line. What is frontline? Is it also ambos, fireys, DOCS workers? “But she has risked making herself the villain here by effectively cutting nurses and police’s salaries when she could have exempted some frontline and the public would have welcomed this” Via news.com.au — Australia’s #1 news site https://www.news.com.au