Written answers
Thursday, 30 July 2020
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
Low Pay Commission
Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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799. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of running the Low Pay Commission. [19996/20]
Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Low Pay Commission was established on 26thFebruary 2015 through the National Minimum Wage (Low Pay Commission) Act 2015. Its principal function is, once each year, to examine the national minimum hourly rate of pay and to make a recommendation to the Minister respecting the rate, ensuring that all decisions are evidence based, fair and sustainable, and do not create significant adverse consequences for employment or competitiveness.
A breakdown of the Commissions expenditure since its establishment has recently been published in its three year report and is set out below:
| Expenditure Item | 2015* | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salaries | €94,000 | €150,000 | €112,000 | €149,200 |
| Fees | €61,400 | €81,000 | €60,000 | €75,300 |
| Research | €75,000 | €55,000 | €84,000 | €55,000 |
| Administration* | €20,300 | €21,000 | €15,000 | €27,600 |
| Total | €250,700 | €307,000 | €271,000 | €307,100 |
| of which: | ||||
| Pay | €155,400 | €231,000 | €172,000 | €224,500 |
| Non-Pay | €95,300 | €76,000 | €99,000 | €82,600 |
*This includes payments during the Commission’s interim period of operations from February 2015. The first full year of operation was 2016.
The 2019 allocated budget for the Low Pay Commission is €490,000, with a split of €260,000 pay and €230,000 non-pay. The estimated outturn for 2019 is €363,296, with a split of €193,192 pay (salaries and fees) and €169,902 non pay.
The three year report from the Low Pay Commission demonstrates the work that has been done by the Commission since it was established in 2015. Alongside its core task of making recommendations each year to Government on the appropriate rate for the National Minimum Wage, the Commission has examined and reported on matters as diverse as the sub minimum rates of the National Minimum Wage, the preponderance of women on the National Minimum Wage, and the allowances provided for Board and Lodgings under the National Minimum Wage.
The Commission’s minimum wage rate recommendations to date have been accepted by Government, resulting in an increase in the National Minimum Wage between January 2016 and February 2020 of 16.7% (from €8.65 to €10.10 per hour).
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