Ireland - Employers plea for halt to retail pay rise - December 22, 2010

IBEC, the employers’ association, has called for a planned pay rise of 1.25% in the grocery retail sector to be put on hold. The increase, which is to come into effect in January, is due under the terms of an employment regulation order (ERO) for the sector. These orders set wage levels and other terms of employment (slightly) above the minimum wage, and are used in low-wage sectors such as retail, catering and hospitality. The Mandate union has accused IBEC of reneging on its commitments. Mandate general secretary John Douglas regarded the move, taken together with the recent cut in the minimum wage, as another attack on the lowest paid workers, and referred to the fact that the Labour Court had approved the increase (See also this Collective Bargaining Newsletter Year 3 November 2010).

English: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2010/1222/breaking42.html

This article was published in the Collective Bargaining Newsletter. It aims to facilitate information exchange between trade unions and to support the work of ETUC's collective bargaining committee. For more information, please contact the editor Maarten van Klaveren, Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies (AIAS) M.vanKlaveren@uva.nl. You may find further information on the ETUI at www.etui.org, and on the AIAS at www.uva-aias.net. © ETUI aisbl, Brussels 2011.