Irish Examiner view: A bump up for both sides

Anyone unsure of where we are on the political calendar need only look at the latest tangling between the coalition partners in Government, or the Minister for Finance’s insistence that he is in charge of the country’s coffers.

There could hardly be a better indication that a budget is being prepared.

Among the measures signposted in the upcoming budget is an increase in the old age pension of €10, which would suggest the purse strings are being kept tight. The cost-of-living crisis which is affecting every household in the country shows no signs of abating, and every extra cent counts for families trying to make ends meet, so €10 is likely to move upwards in the coming months.

It is notable also that the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) is lobbying strongly for a rise in the minimum wage — the ICTU wants a rise of €2 per hour each year for the next two years, bringing it to €15.30 per hour by 2025.

This, too, is sorely needed by hard-pressed families, and in particular because of the effect it has on young earners.

It will of course, be harder to stomach for SMEs in particular, who’ll point to costs driving businesses to the wall or requiring further hikes in prices to consumers.

It has been pointed out that 18- and 19-year-olds do not get the full minimum wage, but 80% and 90% of the hourly rate respectively.

On the face of it, this looks like simple discrimination on the grounds of age and should be rectified as a matter of legislative consistency if nothing else.

It is also a significant barrier to younger people trying to keep their heads above water as students, for instance.

Yesterday a report carried out by the UCD Students' Union on accommodation costs stated that two thirds of students attending that institution who were not living at home pay €750 per month, twice the national average.

A significant proportion of these students are presumably in that 18- to 19-year-old cohort who are directly affected by the reduced minimum wage. Surely it is doubly unfair on such students, already paying exorbitant sums in rent, to be penalised in whatever jobs they can get to support themselves?

If provision is rightly made for the elderly with a hike in pensions, similar action should be taken on behalf of those still in their teens.