Mary White (Fianna Fail)
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It is very important to face up to reality. There is a two-tier economy, comprising of small and medium businesses on the one hand and capital intensive industries on the other hand. The young people working in Google, Facebook and PayPal are doing very well. The capital intensive industries do not create employment. Their modus operandi is to be as capital intensive as possible. The multinational companies pay the highest wages and this puts pressure on small and medium Irish companies. I do not have a problem with the minimum wage but with the knock-on effect an increase in the minimum wage will have on others, who will feel that if a new person is getting this much money they should get more, and more in the following years. People seem to be oblivious to the tension this creates among employees. I fully agree with the concept of the minimum wage in spirit but in many cases the reality is that it impedes companies taking on staff. One has to face up to that, Senator Cullinane.