The federal government has offered political staffers the maximum pay rise allowed by law, along with new travel allowances, leave for cultural activities and extra pay for staff who speak multiple languages.
The agreement also mirrors the government's priorities for the broader workforce, including expanded parental leave and family and domestic violence leave.
Sources said the agreement had strong support from staff, especially those from the offices of Labor, Greens and independent MPs, but several Liberal staffers told the ABC they believed the deal was "totally ridiculous" in a broader economy in which "people are doing it tough". There will also be three days of leave for any staff to attend significant religious or cultural obligations associated with particular faith or culture.
One Liberal source said the deal had effectively shielded highly-paid staffers from what they had lost in the government's redistributed stage 3 tax cuts, which began on July 1. The proposed agreement also includes 18 weeks of parental leave for a primary carer, up from 16, and a pathway to 18 weeks for a secondary carer by the end of the agreement in 2027.
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