Senior Australian public servants have received substantial salary increases for the 2025-26 financial year, with the nation's eSafety Commissioner securing one of the largest individual pay bumps. The rises come amid significant growth in the size and cost of the federal public sector.
Leading the Pack: Key Salary Increases
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has been awarded a salary increase of $73,790. This brings her total annual remuneration to $533,550. Her significant pay rise coincides with her leading role in enforcing the Albanese government's contentious social media ban for Australians under the age of 16.
Other top officials have also seen their pay packets grow. Australian Public Service Commissioner Gordon de Brouwer is now on a total remuneration package of $932,120, up from $910,270. Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett received an increase of over $19,000, taking her annual pay to approximately $816,000.
Further notable increases include:
- Anti-Corruption Commissioner Paul Brereton: Salary up to $803,440 from $784,600.
- Director-General of the Australian Submarine Agency, Jonathan Mead: An extra $17,070 on top of his previous $711,050 salary.
- Military service chiefs: Each earning an additional $15,450, bringing salaries to $659,090.
Million-Dollar Club and Tribunal Oversight
Successive pay rises have now pushed the remuneration for the nation's most senior departmental secretaries past a major threshold. Both Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Steven Kennedy and Treasury secretary Jenny Wilkinson have surpassed the $1 million mark for the 2025-26 financial year.
These salary adjustments are determined independently by the Remuneration Tribunal, which approved a 3.5 per cent pay rise for such offices in 2024. The tribunal's decisions on total remuneration encompass salary, allowances, benefits, and superannuation.
The Chief of the Defence Force, General David Johnston, remains one of the highest-paid officials, now on $983,910. Meanwhile, the Vice Chief of the Defence Force, Robert Chipman, secured a $16,190 increase to $690,470.
Public Sector Expansion and Budget Pressures
The salary increases, which took effect on July 1, 2025, occur against a backdrop of considerable growth in the Commonwealth public service. The number of federal government jobs has risen by 5.6 per cent to 386,000 this financial year.
This expansion has significantly inflated the public sector wages bill, which has grown to $40.9 billion, up from $37.3 billion. In response to broader budget pressures, the federal Labor government has instructed department heads and agency bosses to find savings of up to 5 per cent within their budgets.
The collective pay increase for senior agency heads this year averaged around 2.4 per cent. Other well-remunerated officials include Australian Signals Directorate Director-General Abigail Bradshaw ($753,240) and Australian Electoral Commissioner Jeff Pope ($627,700).
