Siptu Conference: Unions’ goal is €15 per hour living wage

The goal of the trade union movement is a living wage of €15 per hour, delegates at Siptu’s biennial conference have been told.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has previously said the living wage for a single adult — the amount needed to achieve an acceptable minimum standard of living, taking account of the need for food, clothing, heating, accommodation, transport and other essentials — is “at least” €11.50 per hour.

However, at the Siptu conference in Cork, Bernie Casey, a member of the union’s national executive council (NEC), told delegates: “The fight for a living wage of €11.50 per hour is under way. But that is only the beginning. The real objective is the goal of €15 per hour. We have earned it, we deserve it, we have lost too much, suffered too much and feared too much over the past eight years.”