David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses and thank them for the work they are doing. The reports of the Low Pay Commission are interesting and I would like to see publication of the other work that it has commissioned and that was mentioned in the submission. The submission states that the Low Pay Commission estimates that 148,100 people earned at or below the minimum wage in 2022. I am not sure whether it has up-to-date figures for this year. It also stated that for someone on the national minimum wage working a 39-hour week, this translates to a pay increase of €54.60 per week or €2,800 a year. Has the Low Pay Commission looked at relativities? Some employers have been talking about relativities, that is, if someone on the minimum wage gets an increase, then the person above them has to get an increase, and so on. Has that been looked at or factored into any of the deliberations?