Post by Stallit 2 de Halfo on Aug 20, 2008 15:13:31 GMT
Union research presents stark reality of work in the retail sector
Mandate, which represents more than forty thousand retail and bar workers, recently published a research paper, End Low Pay, that reveals that pay for shop assistants averages between only €15,225 and €22,721 per year. It claims that low pay is widespread in the wholesale and retail sectors, which is significant, because it is this sector that is in effect the largest employment sector in the country, employing more than 310,000 workers, or 15 per cent of the country’s work force.
The average starting wage in the sector at present is €9.09 per hour (the minimum wage stands at €8.65). According to the research, assuming average working hours of 32.2 per week (National Employment Survey, 2006: average paid hours of employment in the wholesale and retail sector), this translates to €15,225 per year. Meanwhile, after ten years of service it is estimated that the average wage for a sales assistant is €13.57 per hour, or €22,721 per year—all this in an industry where retail sales growth has been impressive, particularly when compared with other European countries.
In 2007 the growth of retail sales by volume in Ireland was five times that of the euro zone, while the value of retail sales grew by almost 7½ per cent in 2007. In fact over the last three years, if earnings had been indexed to the value of sales, retail wages would have increased by 50 to 60 per cent more than the actual increases received.
The wage increases received by retail employees have been determined by the percentage rates agreed in “social partnership” rather than the performance of the sector itself. While this may seem fair, in practice it results in retail workers on low pay getting much smaller increases in their weekly wage than those on higher rates of pay, effectually meaning that the gap between high-earners and low-earners continues to increase.
In this context, End Low Pay shows that in the period 2001–07 retail workers have fared poorly compared with other workers with similar skill levels. For example, the pay of unskilled operatives in the construction industry was more than double that of retail workers at the mid-point on their pay scale.
The research paper also demonstrates that the lowest-paid workers in Ireland—those earning the national minimum wage—have benefited from flat-rate increases in their hourly rate. This has meant that minimum-wage workers received larger increases than many retail workers.
If this trend continues there is a risk that rather than providing a floor for low pay the minimum wage would in effect be the ceiling for those in the low-paid sectors. Under such circumstances it becomes increasingly untenable for workers in this sector to heed calls by employers for wage restraint.
[CC]
www.communistpartyofireland.ie/sv/07mandate.html
Mandate, which represents more than forty thousand retail and bar workers, recently published a research paper, End Low Pay, that reveals that pay for shop assistants averages between only €15,225 and €22,721 per year. It claims that low pay is widespread in the wholesale and retail sectors, which is significant, because it is this sector that is in effect the largest employment sector in the country, employing more than 310,000 workers, or 15 per cent of the country’s work force.
The average starting wage in the sector at present is €9.09 per hour (the minimum wage stands at €8.65). According to the research, assuming average working hours of 32.2 per week (National Employment Survey, 2006: average paid hours of employment in the wholesale and retail sector), this translates to €15,225 per year. Meanwhile, after ten years of service it is estimated that the average wage for a sales assistant is €13.57 per hour, or €22,721 per year—all this in an industry where retail sales growth has been impressive, particularly when compared with other European countries.
In 2007 the growth of retail sales by volume in Ireland was five times that of the euro zone, while the value of retail sales grew by almost 7½ per cent in 2007. In fact over the last three years, if earnings had been indexed to the value of sales, retail wages would have increased by 50 to 60 per cent more than the actual increases received.
The wage increases received by retail employees have been determined by the percentage rates agreed in “social partnership” rather than the performance of the sector itself. While this may seem fair, in practice it results in retail workers on low pay getting much smaller increases in their weekly wage than those on higher rates of pay, effectually meaning that the gap between high-earners and low-earners continues to increase.
In this context, End Low Pay shows that in the period 2001–07 retail workers have fared poorly compared with other workers with similar skill levels. For example, the pay of unskilled operatives in the construction industry was more than double that of retail workers at the mid-point on their pay scale.
The research paper also demonstrates that the lowest-paid workers in Ireland—those earning the national minimum wage—have benefited from flat-rate increases in their hourly rate. This has meant that minimum-wage workers received larger increases than many retail workers.
If this trend continues there is a risk that rather than providing a floor for low pay the minimum wage would in effect be the ceiling for those in the low-paid sectors. Under such circumstances it becomes increasingly untenable for workers in this sector to heed calls by employers for wage restraint.
[CC]
www.communistpartyofireland.ie/sv/07mandate.html