FG resists calls for minimum wage rise

Calls from Labour minister Joan Burton to increase the minimum wage are being met with resistance from Fine Gael who have concerns about the impact of such a move on job creation.

As both Coalition parties draw their battle lines ahead of October’s budget, the social protection minister said the Government had reversed a minimum wage cut imposed by the previous administration but “we need to go further”.

The Coalition needs to move towards a “living wage” arrangement in the second half of its term in office, she said in a speech to Labour’s Tom Johnson Summer School on Saturday. She said the State is “effectively subsidising” low-paying employers by making welfare payments to low-paid households through the Family Income Supplement.