There has been much debate surrounding Ireland’s minimum wage of late. Many argue that minimum wage is not reflective of the cost of living and thus ‘The Living Wage’ is a better reflection on the minimum amount Irish workers should earn on an hourly pay scale. Enter Ikea…
The Swedish Retail giant has agreed to pay all its Irish staff ‘A living wage’ ensuring a meaningful wage for all workers. Ikea have only one Irish store, located in Ballymun North Dublin. The flat pack giant will issue pay cheques based on the cost of living for employees in Ireland and the UK.
Ikea HR manager for the UK and Ireland Pernille Hagild said as a ‘values-driven organisation’ the chain believed in “providing a meaningful wage to our co-workers that supports the cost of living no matter where they live”.
He furthered ‘’Over the coming months we will work together with the relevant organisations and authorities in Ireland to secure this in the right way in the Irish market.” In the past days the government have agreed to increase the mimumim wage (€8.65 per hour) by 50 cent. Ikea already pays their staff above this, with the bottom pay scale €9.77 per hour.
A consortium of unions and other campaigners have put the living wage in Ireland at €11.50 per hour although it’s not yet known on what basis Ikea will calculate its rate.
Source: http://businessetc.thejournal.ie/ikea-pay-rate-2226056-Jul2015/
