Boosting incomes and productivity will be cornerstone goals of Labor's upcoming jobs and skills summit, despite concessions real wages were falling back due to surging inflation.
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Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Employment Minister Tony Burke on Wednesday outlined five themes that would be covered at its September summit, which is set to inform the Commonwealth a pathway to overcome future economic challenges such as labour shortages and industrial transition.
The issues paper coincided with the Australian Bureau of Statistics releasing the June quarter wage price index which rose 2.6 per cent over the year.
However, Dr Chalmers noted inflation for the same quarter at 6.1 per cent meant real wages had slid backwards.
He noted supporting wage growth would be a core objective of the summit.
"A key focus of the jobs and skills summit will be how do we get wages growing at a sustainable rate again, so that Australians aren't falling further and further behind," Dr Chalmers said.
"We want to get productivity growing again, we want to get wages growing in a sustainable way again and it shouldn't be beyond a country like ours to come together and to seek some common ground on those objectives."
Mr Burke slated the previous government for "deliberately" keeping wage growth low, claiming no mechanism to see growth would be left off the table including the better-off-overall-test.
"I'm not ruling different areas in or out," Mr Burke said.
"The better-off-overall-test is the best example that you'll get at something where I've been deeply skeptical about. But if the parties are able to come forward with collective ideas and bring that together in a way that gets wages moving, then I'm interested."
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Wage growth from the ABS was the largest quarterly increase since September 2014.
Annual private sector wages grew 2.7 per cent while public sector wage growth was 2.4 per cent.
ABS head of price statistics Michelle Marquardt noted expanded demand for skilled jobs was a significant driver in building pressure for higher wages.
"Expanding demand for skilled jobs over the last 12 months has continued to build wage pressure across a broader range of industries and jobs, reflected in the increasing size of pay rises," she said.
Western Australia recorded the highest annual wage growth through to the June quarter, while the ACT booked an annual rise of 2.5 per cent.
The jobs and skills summit issue paper outlines the impacts of climate change the transition to a net zero economy. Part of the discussions will include how productivity can be increased through the structural changes to the economy and where opportunity can be maximised in future industries.
It also outlines possible changes to Australia's enterprise bargaining system to create better job security outcomes and support gender pay equity.
Dr Chalmers' summit is expected to address existing labour market challenges including barriers to finding work and looking at ways to amend skill mismatches and shortages. While migration has been carved out as another major discussion theme.
The summit held in Canberra will be over September 1 and 2. It will bring together governments, industry groups, unions and employers.
