Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Trade unions and member-led organisations representing young people have consistently highlighted the manner in which sub-minimum rates of pay can be used to exploit workers. In my previous question, I referred to people working on the shop floor. They will tell you that if additional hours are available, those hours are more likely to go to the person with the shortest service because that person will be the cheapest person, in contrast to the person with the longest service. That is happening and it is not fair on young workers. It is also not fair on more established workers, who are losing out on hours.

This is exploitation and goes against the principle of equal pay for work of equal value. Nobody at any stage has suggested the sub-minimum rates of pay equate to sub-minimum rates of work. They just do not. Workers are expected to turn up and work as much as anybody else. Excuses for this have suggested the work was for pin money or pocket money for people, but in the middle of this cost-of-living crisis, these people are making a substantial contribution to the family budget. The sub-minimum rates of pay are being used on both sides whereby they exploit the worker, and that worker is then used to the detriment of the longer serving worker to pay cheaper hours.

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