Joan Burton
Ceist:235. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to expand the remit of the Low Pay Commission, especially in respect of young persons. [26004/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 14 June 2018
Ceisteanna (235)
Freagraí scríofa
The Low Pay Commission was established under the National Minimum Wage (Low Pay Commission) Act, 2015. Its remit is to make recommendations regarding the national minimum wage, ensuring that all decisions are evidence based, fair and sustainable, and do not create significant adverse consequences for employment or competitiveness.
The National Minimum Wage Act 2015 also allows the Commission to examine and report its views and recommendations on other matters, related generally to the functions of the Commission under the Act, as may be requested of it from time to time. In this context, in order to obtain a better understanding of the impact of the NMW on younger people the Commission was asked in 2016 to examine the sub-minima (special youth and trainee) rates of the NMW.
The Commission undertook a public consultation process and commissioned research from the ESRI on the use of sub-minima youth rates both in Ireland and internationally. The Commission was also instrumental in the development by the CSO of National Minimum Wage specific data, through the addition of a question on National Minimum Wage for the first time to the CSO’s Quarterly National Household Survey (QNHS), now the Labour Force Survey in 2016. This data shows that the numbers in employment on age-based rates are very low: an average of just 1.5% of all employees (22,500) reported earning less than the “adult rate” of the NMW in 2017, and around a quarter to one-third of these reported being on age-based rates.
The Low Pay Commission submitted its report on sub-minima rates to me in December 2017. It concluded that there is little evidence of any significant abuse of the youth rates. The Commission’s recommendations with regard to the age-based and first employment rates were that these rates should be retained, but on a simplified basis to improve both compliance and the ease of operation.
The Commission’s report considered the abolition of youth rates but concluded that the rates would then no longer give any recognition to the difference between a young inexperienced worker and a more experienced colleague, which could lead to employers no longer seeing a value in hiring young people (and potentially impact on youth employment rates).
The Commission also concluded that abolishing youth rates could potentially act as an incentive for young people to leave education and take up employment, which could have a negative impact on their long-term prospects.
I accepted the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission, and Government gave its approval to my proposals regarding their implementation in February this year. The necessary amendments to the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 are being implemented in the Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill and were uncontested and unanimously accepted with cross-party support at Committee stage in the Dáil in mid-May. The Bill will be progressing to Report Stage later this month.
The remit of the Low Pay Commission as it is currently set out in legislation covers all employees in receipt of the NMW, younger and older workers alike (with certain exceptions, including apprentices and close family members). The remit of the Commission therefore already covers young people.