Parliament has voted unanimously for the $2 billion pay equity settlement that will ensure aged care and disability workers finally get paid properly.
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About 55,000 predominantly female aged-care and disability workers will receive a pay rise of between 15 and 50 percent, now that the Care and Support Worker Settlement Bill has been passed.
Health Minister Jonathan Coleman said the historic deal corrected the long-running undervaluing of workers caring for some of the country's most vulnerable people.
Dr Coleman said a fulltime employee would take home an extra $100 a week from the start of July.
He said, for the 20,000 workers currently on the minimum wage of $15.75 per hour, it meant they would move to at least $19 per hour - an increase of 21 percent.
The bill has now passed its third reading.
