The Labour Party has called for living wage to be increased due to the number of workers on minimum pay.
Party leader Brendan Howlin TD wants to see an investment in Universal Basic Services and an increase in the amount workers are paid.
Minimum wage in Ireland currently stands at €9.80 an hour for a 39 hour week, working out at around €18,000 per year after taxes.
Mr Howlin said: “We know from national statistics that around 137,000 people – one in every 13 workers – was earning the minimum wage last year.
"Working a full-time 39-hour week for €9.80 implies a gross annual income of less than €20,000, or net take home pay of just over €18,000 for a single person.
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“Low pay is not just restricted to those on the minimum wage. More than one in four workers in Ireland are classified as being on ‘low pay’ – earning less than two-thirds of median pay – which implies net take home pay of just over €23,000 for a single person.”
Howlin also discussed how women were more likely to be earning minimum wage.
He said: “Many minimum wage workers are young, four out of five of them are working in the services sector, and women are disproportionately likely to be earning the minimum wage.”
Howlin said that workers today are at a disadvantage because unlike other European countries, Ireland’s public transport, public housing and public services are underdeveloped, meaning minimum wage workers have to pay extra expenses on top of very little income.
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He said: “Universal Basic Services could include subsidised childcare, adult social care, public transport, and subsidised housing.
“New services, such as access to information and communications technology, could also become Universal Basic Services as they become essential to daily life.”
“Labour’s vision is for all workers to attain at least a living wage, set at over two-thirds of median income, but also for all workers to have access to Universal Basic Services.
"These shared public services are vital to bridging the gap between working poverty and the ability to enjoy a decent quality of life.”
