Block on bid to protect workers from minimum wage cut

A LAST-DITCH attempt to protect existing workers from the €1 an hour cut to the minimum wage was successfully blocked by the Government.

This was despite disaffected Fianna Fáil backbencher Mattie McGrath voting against his colleagues after claiming he was duped by Finance Minister Brian Lenihan on attempts to reverse the social welfare cuts.

Mr McGrath admitted he could be regarded as being “all over the place” but said he was an “honest broker” on the deal, which reduced the level of protection for all workers.

On the proposed exemption of employed people, Labour Affairs Minister Dara Calleary said a number of legal advisers had told the Government it would be illegal to apply the €7.65 limit only to new positions.

Labour Party Enterprise spokesman Willie Penrose had tabled an amendment to the emergency legislation, which gave effect to the budget announcement.

This was worded to exempt people already employed on the €8.65 an hour rate.

If adopted, it would have stopped the bill affecting “any contract of employment entered into before the coming into operation of this act”.

Mr Calleary said advice had been received, from a number of sources, which said such an exemption could not be implemented because it would complicate contracts based on the minimum wage.

He said that despite the cut, current workers would still be protected under contract law and their pay could not be altered unless agreed.

The bill was passed by 79 votes to 74 despite Mr McGrath voting with the opposition.

On Wednesday, Mr McGrath had voted for the separate bill cutting social welfare payments, even though he was against the reductions.

He said he did so because ministers had assured him they would try and find €80 million in savings elsewhere to reverse some of the worst welfare cuts.

He said Mr Lenihan then told him on Thursday that he would recoup by way of a super tax the €40m in bonuses being paid to AIB staff and use that money to reduce the savings required from the social welfare budget.

But when Mr Lenihan rose to his feet in the Dáil to announce the super tax on Thursday night, he made very clear it would apply only to future bonuses, and not the AIB payments.

“I was deceived,” Mr McGrath said.

“I might be all over the place but I’m an honest broker.

“The public have been conned but I’m not going to allow myself be conned by my colleagues.”

Yesterday’s legislation also included provision to cap public sector pay at €250,000 a year, as well as lower ministerial pay.

However, Martin Ferris of Sinn Féin claimed that this was not fair as he said TDs, senators and junior ministers were not being touched.

Sinn Féin said that two junior ministers sat in the Dáil for two hours of the debate and earned as much in that time as a person working on the minimum wage would earn in a week.