Unions Demand Action on Cost-of-Living Supports This May Day

On International Workers' Day, Irish trade unions are amplifying their calls for government intervention to address the escalating cost-of-living crisis. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) and the Dublin Council of Trade Unions are spearheading a May Day rally, themed 'Can You Afford to Live?', highlighting the severe impact of affordability and housing crises on the younger generation.

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Workers built and run this country, but workers are being priced out of it.

Owen Reidy, General Secretary of ICTU, articulated the unions' stance, stating, "Workers built and run this country, but workers are being priced out of it." He pointed to exorbitant rents, insufficient wages, and the inability of young people to afford to remain in Ireland as critical issues. Reidy emphasized that May Day is not only a celebration of worker solidarity but also a clear warning to the government against expecting workers to bear the brunt of a crisis they did not create.

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Rents topping €2,000 a month, wages that don’t stretch to the end of the week, and a generation of young people who have done everything right and still cannot afford to stay here.

Susan Fitzgerald, Irish Secretary of the Unite Trade Union, echoed this sentiment, asserting that workers will not tolerate being "shortchanged." She declared that union members are resolute in defending their living standards and are prepared to fight for "inflation-busting pay increases" through negotiation or, if necessary, industrial action. This firm position signals a potential escalation in labor disputes if employers attempt to undermine workers' compensation.

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May Day is a celebration of what workers can achieve when they stand together, but it is also a warning to any government that thinks workers will quietly absorb the cost of a crisis they did not cause.

Furthermore, the National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) is using May Day to advocate for the immediate abolition of sub-minimum wage rates for young workers. The NYCI argues that Ireland's continued practice of allowing pay below the minimum wage for individuals under 20 constitutes age-based discrimination. Kathryn Walsh, NYCI Director of Policy and Advocacy, highlighted that this policy exacerbates inequality and poverty, with over 27,000 young workers earning less than the minimum wage. While the Low Pay Commission has recommended abolishing these rates, the government has deferred a decision until 2029, a delay that unions and youth advocates find unacceptable.

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We are putting employers on notice: Any attempts to shortchange workers will not be tolerated.