Government’s minimum wage blunder

THE Government department responsible for policing wage rates was yesterday accused of misleading non-nationals by displaying an incorrect figure for the minimum wage on its website.

Published online in 10 languages including Polish, Latvian and Russian, the Department of Enterprise website cites the Irish minimum wage as €7 instead of the correct €7.65 rate.

The inaccuracies, spotted by Cork Labour TD Kathleen Lynch, are an unfortunate embarrassment for the Government at a time when protection of migrant workers’ rights is to the fore in difficult social partnership talks.