Jul 2015
27
Minimum Wage Vs Living Wage
Minimum Wage
The minimum wage is the lowest rate of pay that employers can legally pay to workers. Presently in Ireland the minimum wage stands at €8.65 per hour (apart from exceptions for apprentices etc.). However a low pay commission group is to be established and is expected to recommend an increase of €0.50 per hour. The commission is likely to be modelled on a similar body in the UK, which has employer and trade union representatives. Tánaiste Joan Burton said the minimum wage needs to be kept under constant review due to cost of living increases.
Employers’ groups such as Ibec and business groups such as the restaurant sector are strongly opposed any increase in the minimum wage and believe that any increase will inevitably lead to job losses and risk the economy’s fragile recovery. “There is no justifiable economic argument for imposing a 6% increase on SMEs when inflation is practically zero,” ISME’s Mark Fielding said. The Small Firms Association called on the government to reject the proposals, and freeze the minimum wage for the next three years.
Meanwhile the Unite trade union expressed its disappointment believing the proposed rise does not go far enough in its submission to the commission, it had sought a €1 increase.
The Living Wage
A living wage is based on the amount an individual needs to earn to cover the basic costs of living. A coalition of groups says this is about €11.45 an hour, significantly above the minimum wage of €8.65 an hour. Earnings below the living wage suggest employees are forced to do without certain essentials so they can make ends-meet. Ms Burton has encouraged employers to commit to paying a “living wage” to their employees. She has that this will benefit society by giving lower paid workers more spending power and reducing reliance on social welfare. However Ms Burton said the move towards a living wage should initially be on a voluntary basis, rather than a legally enforceable level of pay like the national minimum wage. In recent days Ikea in Ballymun announced that it will be introducing the living wage for all Irish and UK employees. Ms Burton has said “If people get a living wage, they have more spending power, more financial independence and can move away from welfare dependency. It benefits the family and the exchequer.”
Mar 2015
16
TaxSaver Commuter Ticket Scheme
Established in 2000, the TaxSaver Commuter Ticket Scheme is an incentive for workers to use public transport and is seen as a way to encourage the use of public transport. The scheme is operated in conjunction with the Revenue Commissioners. The scheme involves employers providing employees with bus and rail commuter tickets while saving on employer PRSI payments.
The employers and employees must sign a contract agreeing to participate. The employer then applies for commuter tickets for employees. Information on tickets are available from Dublin Bus, Irish Rail, Bus Éireann, Luas, and approved private operators websites. Detailed information sheets on each type of ticket are also available for distribution to employees.
Employees participating in the scheme may receive the tickets through salary sacrifice, in lieu of an annual cash bonus, or as a benefit-in-kind. It costs employers and employees nothing to join the scheme itself.
Through salary sacrifice employees receive TaxSaver commuter tickets as part of their basic salary package. They then benefit from reduced Income Tax, PRSI and Universal Social Charge (USC) payments due to the fact that the cost is a tax allowable deduction.
Employees only have to pay tax, PRSI and USC on the "money" portion of their salary. Employer PRSI is also calculated on the "money" portion of the employee's salary.
Employers can achieve PRSI savings of up to 10.75% and employees can save between 31% and 52% of travel costs as a result of tax, PRSI and USC savings by participating.
Companies must keep a receipt of purchase and a copy of the ticket for their tax records.
Jun 2014
4
Changes to Holiday Pay Calculations
As we enter the summer holiday season employers need to ensure that they are paying their employees correctly during annual leave.
A recent decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) will impact how some annual leave pay is calculated.
Do you pay employee’s commission? Is the commission calculated based on the amount of sales made or actual work carried out? If yes, according to the ECJ, holiday pay should include commission pay.
The decision was made in the case of Locke v British Gas Trading and Others. Locke was a Sales Representative whose commission made up approximately 60% of his remuneration. After taking two weeks leave in 2011, Locke suffered financially as he was unable to generate sales for the period he was on annual leave.
The ECJ ruled that the purpose of annual leave is to allow a worker to enjoy a period of rest and relaxation with sufficient pay. By not including commission payments with holiday pay, employees are less likely to take annual leave so as to avoid financial hardship.
It has been left to the national courts to determine how to calculate the commission to which a worker is entitled, however the court did suggest that taking an average amount of commission earned over a certain period, e.g. the previous 12 months.
Employers are advised to review their commission policies to establish which, if any, payments need to be included in annual leave pay.
