Recent increases to the minimum wage in Ireland led to a reduction in hours worked for minimum wage employees, according to a study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
The finding forms part of a bulletin from the institute on minimum wage policy and how minimum wage workers are identified by statisticians in the first instance.
The study found that employees on the minimum wage saw their hours worked reduced following recent increases to the wage in law.
In addition, it established that those who were simply asked whether they were on the minimum wage saw their hours worked reduced by approximately one hour per week following the 2020 minimum wage increase.
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This figure rose to 1.8 hours a week in the case of employees who were determined to be on minimum wage on the basis of administrative earnings data.
The Low Pay Commission recommended the national minimum wage in 2020 be increased by 30c, from €9.80 to €10.10. The current minimum wage is €13.50, effective since January 1st.
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The cost of living for a basic standard of living has jumped by almost 20 per cent since 2020, with the spike leaving many struggling to make ends meet, according to research published in June.
The annual Minimal Essential Standard of Living study compiled by the Vincentian Research Centre at the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul measured what people need for a basic standard of living.
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It identified a 1.8 per cent jump in prices last year, with a climb of 18.8 per cent since 2020.
It looked at the average weekly cost of goods and services such as food, clothes and energy for a socially acceptable minimum standard of living.
The ESRI study found Ireland to be unique in Europe in that it is the only country in which its labour force survey contains administrative earnings data, self-reported hours worked, and a direct question that asks employees if they are on the minimum wage.
It said this combination of factors allows for a more reliable way of studying minimum wage employment, and argued for the introduction of a standardised minimum wage question across EU labour force surveys.
“This would not only improve reliability of minimum wage research but would also facilitate comparative cross-country minimum wage studies – an area that is currently under-researched,” the ESRI said.
