ACT public servants to walk off the job as pay negotiations with government stall
ACT public servants are set to walk off the job with hundreds voting to strike after months of negotiations with the territory government.
Housing ACT staff are set to strike for an hour next Thursday, May 14, 2026, after public servants voted up the protected action on Thursday, May 7.
More than 95 per cent of Community and Public Service Union members who participated in a ballot voted for protected industrial action as bargaining stalls between the union and government.
The vote covered staff working across health and administration in the ACT government.
The public sector union rejected the government's latest pay deal in March 2026 , with one member saying rising car park fees outstripped their raises.
On Thursday, ACT regional secretary Maddy Northam said members voted "overwhelmingly" in support of taking industrial action against the pay offer.
She said members were asking for a pay rise at or above the inflation rate, which is about 4.6 per cent .
ACT regional secretary Maddy Northam with union members outside the Legislative Assembly on Thursday. Picture by Lucy Arundell
"These workers don't want to stop work. They care about and value the work they do for our community every day," she said.
"Now, they are asking the government to value their work, too. We know the community understands just how important these jobs are. They rely on them to access government services every day."
Asked about the stalled negotiations in question time, ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said he could not detail possible further pay offers under discussion by cabinet.
"There is no magic pot of money, sitting out there. If there were, we would access it," he said.
"We also need to be conscious, Mr Speaker, of the government's own budget and fiscal position ... extra money that we need to find will come from ACT taxpayers."
Hundreds of public servants marched outside the Legislative Assembly on Friday, May 1, with the union saying some non-acute parts of Canberra's hospitals were shut down for several hours due to staff attending the rally.
A union representing ACT public hospital doctors has also made the first step in voting on taking protected action after 80 per cent of its' members rejected the ACT government's pay offer.
The pay deal offered to territory government public servants in mid-March promised a wage increase of 3 per cent every year for three years.
ACT public servants protesting outside the Legislative Assembly on May 1. Picture supplied by CPSU
The date of the workforce's superannuation increase of 0.5 per cent, taking employer contributions to 13 per cent, would have been pushed back six months to July 1, 2028, while previously-offered entitlements including more than 12 weeks extra leave for non-birthing parents remained the same.
ACT public servants were previously offered a pay deal in December 2025 worth more than 7.5 per cent over three years, which was rejected .
The consumer price index was set to rise by 3.25 per cent in 2025-26 and up to 2.75 per cent the following year, according to the ACT government's budget review , meaning the first pay offer was set to be a below-inflation deal.
The ACT's public sector enterprise agreements that cover most of the workforce expired on March 31, 2026.
First published: in the Canberra Times on May 7, 2026 as "ACT public servants to walk off the job as pay negotiations with government stall", By Lucy Arundell.
Licensed by C©PYRIGHTAGENCY. You must not copy this work without permission.
Image credits: Lucy Arundell, and CPSU
+612 9394 7600 copyright.com.au
