Ivana Bacik
Ceist:381. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of persons in receipt of sub-minima rates of pay for those aged 17, 18, and 19 years, in tabular form. [47280/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 7 November 2023
Ceisteanna (381)
Freagraí scríofa
As the Deputy will be aware, last year, the then Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Leo Varadkar, requested the Low Pay Commission to again examine the issues relating to retaining or removing the sub-minimum or youth rates and to make recommendations on the subject. The Low Pay Commission takes an evidence-based approach to its work and asked the Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, to conduct background research on the issue.
This “Sub-minimum wages in Ireland” report was published earlier this month.
As the report explains, the incidence of sub-minimum wage employment in Ireland is low. In 2022, just 1.4 per cent of all employees were sub-minimum wage employees. This is equivalent to approximately 30,000 individuals. In the same year, 5.6 per cent of employees were earning the full-rate minimum wage, equivalent to approximately 120,000 individuals.
According to employees’ self-reported status in the Irish Labour Force Survey, approximately half of all sub-minimum wage employees report earning a youth rate.
Just five per cent report being employed by a relative, while apprentices and ‘other reasons’ both account for 20 per cent of subminimum wage employment.
The overall incidence of youth-rate sub-minimum employment, therefore, is very low in Ireland. Just 0.7 per cent, or one in 140 employees, are on a sub-minimum youth rate. This is equivalent to approximately 15,000 individuals.
Further details of the incidence of the subminimum wages by employee characteristics is shown in the table below:
Incidence of sub-minimum wage employment by employee characteristic (Q3 2019–2022)
|
- |
15 & 16 year olds |
17 year olds |
18 year olds |
19 year olds |
|
Subminimum Wage |
52% |
39% |
21% |
11% |
The incidence of sub-minimum rate employment varies significantly by age. 52% of all 15 & 16 year olds are employed on sub-minimum rates. The percentage employed on subminimum rates drops to 39% amongst 17 year olds, 21% amongst 18 year olds and 11% amongst 19 year olds.
Further details on the numbers in receipt of sub-minima rates of pay by age will be included in the Low Pay Commission’s forthcoming report.