A majority of workers believe they are underpaid for the skills and effort they bring to their jobs, research commissioned by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) shows.
The survey of 1,850 workers, carried out by Ireland Thinks, also shows almost half feel they have no meaningful say in decisions relating to their working conditions.
It also finds women and young workers are the most likely groups to believe their views are not taken on board.
Ictu, which has long campaigned for the legal right to union representation in collective bargaining, says the Government should focus on introducing measures that make jobs better.
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The survey has been published to coincide with the launch of a policy document, Quality Employment and Good Jobs, by the Nevin Economic Research Institute (Neri).
In the survey Neri, which is funded by Ictu, highlights a range of issues affecting members of the workforce, including growing job insecurity in areas such as retail and manufacturing as well poor pay and conditions in many parts of the caring sector.
In addition to rights on collective bargaining, long opposed by business organisations in Ireland, Ictu says the Government should increase statutory sick pay entitlements, extend measures intended to help with work/life balance and bring the national minimum wage (NMW) into line with the living wage.
NGOs campaigning for the living wage, which is generally based on 60 per cent of average earnings, say it should be €15.40 an hour, €1.25 above the current NMW.
Neri suggests that State-backed improvements result in “reduced employee turnover, less recruitment costs, and greater productivity and innovation due to having a more experienced, qualified, engaged and motivated workforce”.
The survey found 52 per cent of respondents – which would equate to 1.3 million workers, the authors suggest – currently believe they are not fairly paid for the work they do. Among women, the figure is 56 per cent and among those aged 18 to 24, it is 55 per cent.
Forty-one per cent do not believe they have “a meaningful say” in the decisions that affect their conditions of employment, a figure that increases to 48 per cent among women. For men, the corresponding number is 35 per cent.
There is also a substantial disparity between employees of working-class and middle-class backgrounds with a third of the former group and just over half of the latter feeling excluded.
When it comes to negotiating with an employer over pay and conditions, just 17 per cent of young workers believe they have an equal say in the process.
“Irish workers are being short-changed and they know it,” Ictu general secretary Owen Reidy. “The Government has given big business tax cuts and weaker workers’ rights, while people are struggling with pay that doesn’t match the work they do.”
The Government and employers, he said, should take steps to ensure “everyone has decent pay, a secure job, and a say in their work. These policies are the norm across much of Europe. Unfortunately, workers in Ireland are being left behind by their own Government”.
