Industry wages in Australia in 2026 vary by a factor of more than two between the highest and lowest paying sectors, with mining sitting at the top of the ABS Average Weekly Earnings data and accommodation and food services consistently at the bottom. Where you work matters as much as what you do — and for many Australians weighing career decisions, understanding how pay is distributed across industries is as important as understanding individual role salaries.
How the ABS Measures Industry Wages
Two ABS surveys are relevant here and they measure different things. Understanding the difference prevents misreading the data.
The ABS Average Weekly Earnings (AWE) survey is published biannually — in February and August each year — and reports the average gross weekly earnings of employees by industry, sector, and state. It captures what workers are actually taking home before tax, including overtime and penalty rates, and covers full-time adult ordinary time earnings as its headline measure.
The ABS Wage Price Index (WPI) is published quarterly and measures the change in the price of wages over time, controlling for quality and quantity of work. It does not tell you what someone earns — it tells you how fast wages in a given industry are growing.
For this article, AWE data provides the dollar figures. WPI data provides the growth context. Both matter when assessing whether an industry is genuinely paying more or simply keeping pace with inflation.
Industry Wages: The Full ABS Breakdown
The table below draws on the most recent available ABS Average Weekly Earnings data, reporting full-time adult ordinary time earnings by industry division.
| Industry | Avg. Weekly Earnings (FT) | Avg. Annual Earnings (Est.) | WPI Growth (YoY) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mining | ~$2,710 | ~$141,000 | +4.1% |
| Electricity, Gas, Water & Waste | ~$2,320 | ~$120,600 | +3.8% |
| Financial & Insurance Services | ~$2,280 | ~$118,600 | +3.5% |
| Professional, Scientific & Technical | ~$2,140 | ~$111,300 | +4.3% |
| Public Administration & Safety | ~$2,060 | ~$107,100 | +3.9% |
| Construction | ~$1,980 | ~$103,000 | +4.6% |
| Information Media & Telecommunications | ~$1,960 | ~$102,000 | +3.4% |
| Education & Training | ~$1,880 | ~$97,800 | +3.7% |
| Health Care & Social Assistance | ~$1,620 | ~$84,200 | +4.2% |
| Manufacturing | ~$1,590 | ~$82,700 | +3.6% |
| Transport, Postal & Warehousing | ~$1,540 | ~$80,100 | +4.0% |
| Wholesale Trade | ~$1,500 | ~$78,000 | +3.3% |
| Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing | ~$1,350 | ~$70,200 | +3.1% |
| Retail Trade | ~$1,280 | ~$66,600 | +3.5% |
| Arts & Recreation Services | ~$1,210 | ~$62,900 | +3.2% |
| Accommodation & Food Services | ~$1,080 | ~$56,200 | +3.6% |
Source: ABS Average Weekly Earnings and Wage Price Index, most recent available data. Figures represent full-time adult ordinary time earnings and are indicative approximations. Annual earnings are calculated estimates (weekly × 52) and do not account for leave, overtime variation, or part-time patterns within each industry.
The Standout Industries
Mining: Highest Paying, Most Volatile
Mining has sat at the top of the AWE table consistently for over a decade. Average full-time earnings of approximately $2,710 per week — roughly $141,000 per year — reflect several structural realities of the sector:
- Remote and fly-in fly-out (FIFO) work attracts significant location and hardship allowances
- Shift structures often include overtime and penalty rates that inflate average earnings well above base rates
- Demand for specialised skills — drilling, blasting, processing, engineering — commands premium pay
- Enterprise agreements in the sector are typically negotiated above award rates
The catch is volatility. Mining employment is highly sensitive to commodity prices and project cycles. Earnings are high, but job security in a downturn can evaporate quickly. The skills shortage in mining is also significant — for a breakdown of which roles are hardest to fill nationally, see our skills shortage in Australia 2026 analysis.
Construction: Growing Fast From a High Base
Construction sits mid-to-upper in the earnings table but stands out in the WPI data — wage growth of approximately 4.6% per year is among the fastest of any industry. This is a direct consequence of a trade labour shortage that has persisted since the pandemic construction boom of 2020–2022. Demand for carpenters, concreters, plumbers, electricians, and project managers has consistently exceeded supply, giving workers in those trades genuine bargaining power.
Enterprise agreement wages in construction are also typically well above the award floor, and overtime is common on large projects. For workers willing to work long hours on major infrastructure or housing projects, total earnings frequently exceed the average AWE figure significantly.
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
This category covers a wide range of roles — lawyers, accountants, engineers, consultants, IT professionals, architects. Average full-time earnings of approximately $2,140 per week reflect strong demand for skilled knowledge workers and the concentration of senior, experienced professionals within this classification.
WPI growth of 4.3% in this sector also indicates that employers are competing for talent. Technology roles in particular have seen sustained wage pressure as demand for software engineers, data scientists, and cybersecurity professionals has outpaced domestic supply.
Health Care and Social Assistance: High Demand, Constrained Pay
Health care is Australia’s largest employing industry — and one where the gap between demand and wages creates ongoing tension. Average full-time earnings of approximately $1,620 per week are above the national median but significantly below what comparably skilled professionals earn in private sector knowledge industries.
Pay in health care is heavily structured by awards and enterprise agreements — the Nurses Award, the Health Professionals and Support Services Award, and various state government agreements set floors that constrain both low pay and high pay. WPI growth of 4.2% is solid, but it follows years of below-average growth in the sector, meaning real wages are only now recovering lost ground.
The sector’s wage dynamics are also directly connected to gender. Health care is female-dominated, and the historically lower pay relative to comparable skill levels is central to the gender pay gap story. For more on that, see our WGEA gender pay gap breakdown for 2026.
The Bottom of the Table
Accommodation and Food Services
Accommodation and food services consistently records the lowest average weekly earnings of any industry — approximately $1,080 per week for full-time adult ordinary time earnings. This figure is dragged down by several factors:
- Heavy reliance on award wage rates with limited enterprise agreement coverage
- High concentration of casual and part-time workers
- Lower skill thresholds for entry-level roles reducing wage competition
- Thin operating margins in hospitality that constrain employer ability to pay above minimum rates
It is worth noting that the AWE full-time figure understates the earnings picture for many workers in this sector, because casual loadings (25% on the base rate) and penalty rates for weekend and public holiday work can lift actual hourly earnings materially above the ordinary time rate — but the hours are often part-time or irregular, so total weekly earnings remain low.
Retail Trade
Retail sits just above hospitality at approximately $1,280 per week. The sector has seen above-award enterprise agreements at major retailers, and the introduction of higher weekend penalty rates following Fair Work Commission decisions has improved conditions for many retail workers. But the structural characteristics are similar to hospitality — significant casual and part-time employment, award reliance, and thin margins.
Wage Growth: Which Industries Are Moving Fastest
The WPI data adds an important dimension. An industry with high current wages but slow growth may be losing ground in real terms if inflation is running above its wage index. An industry with lower current wages but fast growth may be catching up.
Industries with WPI growth above 4% in the most recent available data:
- Construction — 4.6%
- Professional, Scientific and Technical — 4.3%
- Health Care and Social Assistance — 4.2%
- Mining — 4.1%
- Transport, Postal and Warehousing — 4.0%
Industries with WPI growth below 3.5%:
- Wholesale Trade — 3.3%
- Information Media and Telecommunications — 3.4%
- Arts and Recreation — 3.2%
- Agriculture — 3.1%
With headline CPI running at approximately 3–3.5% through 2024–25, industries growing wages below that threshold are, in real terms, delivering flat or negative wage growth to their workers.
Public Sector vs Private Sector
The public/private sector divide is also significant in AWE data. The ABS reports average earnings for both, and the gap has narrowed in recent years as public sector enterprise agreements have delivered above-CPI increases following a period of wage restraint.
Key points:
- Public sector wages are typically more compressed — smaller gaps between entry-level and senior pay
- Private sector top-end wages in finance, mining, and professional services significantly exceed public sector equivalents at senior levels
- Public sector workers benefit from defined job security, superannuation arrangements, and leave entitlements that are not fully captured in the AWE earnings figure
- The public sector WPI has been growing at approximately 3.8–4.0%, broadly in line with private sector for the first time in several years
What This Means for Workers Considering a Move
The AWE data is a useful starting point, but it has limits as a career planning tool:
- Averages hide distributions. A $2,140 average in professional services includes both a graduate earning $65,000 and a partner billing $500,000. The midpoint is not a reliable guide to what a specific role pays.
- Location matters. AWE figures are national averages. Mining wages in Western Australia are higher than the national mining average. Hospitality wages in regional areas are often at or near the award floor.
- Career trajectory matters more than entry point. An industry with strong WPI growth and a skills shortage may deliver better lifetime earnings than one with a high current average but slower growth.
For the baseline floor — the minimum any full-time worker can legally be paid — our minimum wage Australia 2026 breakdown covers the Fair Work Commission’s most recent national minimum wage decision and how award rates flow from it.
FAQ
Which industry pays the highest wages in Australia in 2026?
Mining is the highest paying industry based on ABS Average Weekly Earnings data, with full-time adult ordinary time earnings of approximately $2,710 per week — around $141,000 per year. Electricity, gas and water, and financial services follow.
Which industry has the lowest wages in Australia in 2026?
Accommodation and food services records the lowest average full-time weekly earnings, at approximately $1,080 per week. Retail trade and arts and recreation services also sit at the lower end of the AWE table.
Which industries are growing wages the fastest in 2026?
Which industries are growing wages the fastest in 2026? Based on the ABS Wage Price Index, construction, professional and scientific services, and health care have recorded the fastest wage growth — all above 4% year-on-year. Construction in particular reflects acute trade labour shortages.
What is the difference between the AWE and the WPI?
The ABS Average Weekly Earnings survey reports how much workers are actually earning. The Wage Price Index measures how fast wages are changing over time, controlling for the mix of jobs. Both are published by the ABS and serve different analytical purposes.
Are public sector wages keeping up with private sector wages in 2026?
The gap has narrowed. Public sector WPI growth has been running at approximately 3.8–4.0%, broadly comparable to private sector growth, after several years of lagging. However, the private sector still leads at the top end — senior roles in mining, finance, and professional services have no public sector equivalent in terms of total remuneration.
Conclusion
Industry wages in Australia in 2026 reflect a labour market shaped by skills shortages, award structures, and the uneven distribution of high-paying roles. Mining, utilities, and financial services sit at the top of the earnings table. Hospitality and retail sit at the bottom, largely award-dependent and structurally constrained. The more important signal for workers is wage growth, not just current level — and by that measure, construction, professional services, and health care are the industries where pay is moving fastest, driven by genuine competition for skills that supply has not yet matched.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or employment advice. Data is sourced from publicly available Australian government sources and is accurate at time of publication. Please consult a registered professional for advice specific to your situation.
