Australians Make Less Money While Working Longer Than Before COVID-19 Pandemic: Research

Staff at Lux Cafe serve food in Melbourne, Australia, on Oct. 22, 2021. Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

A new study has shown that Australians, on average, are working longer but bringing home less money than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an economic and well-being study, researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) surveyed nearly 3,500 Australian adults and found that financial stress was at its highest level since the COVID-19 outbreak occurred and almost reached the pre-pandemic levels.

The report indicated that one in four respondents found it hard to sustain their daily life with what they currently earn.

At the same time, it was revealed that Australians had to work longer at their jobs as the average work hours per week increased slightly from 21.9 hours in February 2020 to 22.6 in October 2022.

However, average income levels dropped by 3.1 percent in the past six months.

Specifically, the report said the weekly average household real income stood at $1,629 (US$1,036) in October 2022, a significant drop compared to the $1,700 a week recorded in November 2020 and nearly $1,800 a week in February 2020.

The study’s co-author Matthew Gray said inflation had subjected more Australians to financial stress.

“Despite Australians working more on average, they have told us that what they earn now buys them less in the face of rising inflation and living costs,” he said.

The research also showed that 48 percent of the people surveyed believed prices had soared since the pandemic.

People shop for fruit and vegetable produce at Paddy's Market in Sydney, Australia, on Oct. 22, 2022. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

While half of the respondents in the lowest income brackets said they were struggling to cope with rising prices, only five percent of those in the top income bracket reported a similar problem.

The findings came as the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted the official cash rate for the seventh consecutive month in November.

The bank also revised its inflation forecast, expecting the CPI (consumer price index) to reach around eight percent by the end of 2022, up from the 7.75 percent in the previous estimate.

More Australians Consider Living Costs A Big Problem

As everyday items are getting more and more expensive, the ANU research found that an increased number of Australians considered the rising cost of living a big issue.

In particular, 56.9 percent of the respondents believed price rises were a “very big problem” in October, up from 37 percent in January 2022.

“Clearly, the cost of living is making it tough for many Australians despite our economy and society coming out of lockdowns and opening up,” Prof. Nicholas Biddle, the study’s lead author, said.

“As the government aims to increase the well-being of all Australians with its first budget, cost of living and financial stress should be high on their agenda.”

In a recent speech at an economic conference, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers rejected the calls for cost-of-living relief to help Australians deal with rising inflation.

They said providing handouts would worsen inflation and that the responsible approach to the issue was to rebuild fiscal buffers and start the budget repair process.