SIPTU has condemned the proposal by the Low Pay Commission to raise the minimum wage by just 10c to €9.25 an hour as a completely inadequate response to the issue of low pay and poverty. SIPTU National Campaigns and Equality Organiser, Karan O’Loughlin, said: “Raising the minimum wage by 10c is a completely inadequate response to the issue of low pay for workers. The SIPTU position is that all workers should seek to work with their colleagues to collectively bargain for payment of the Living Wage, which is currently set at €11.50 per hour. “Wage rises must be collectively bargained for because raising minimum pay as a stand alone measure does not relieve poverty. Security of hours worked and other supports such as sick pay and pensions, which can be achieved though collective bargaining, are required to give workers a real opportunity to live decent lives.” She added: “Joined up thinking is needed from Government if it serious about tackling poverty and low pay. It must take urgent action to eliminate the imposition by employers of precarious working conditions on workers. These are merely a tool to maintain a vulnerable and disposable workforce. There is no legitimate business case for such employment practices.”
SIPTU condemns proposal to raise minimum wage by 10c as completely inadequate
