Minister Burke has a very big decision to make, says CSNA
If an hourly increase of 50 cent is implemented it would represent a 3.53% increase, bringing the new hourly rate to €14.65
Print4 September 2026
There were reports in The Irish Times recently that the Low Pay Commission (LPC) had recommended (not unanimously) a 5.6% or 79 cent per hour increase to the current €14.15 hourly rate for adult workers aged 20 years and over.
Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke is not obliged to accept this recommendation and would be entitled to put forward a different (or no) figure to be included in Budget 2027.
While no Minister has amended the recommendation of the LPC in any of the previous years since the first LPC Report in 2015, there is always a first.
Inflation
The most recent statistics and projections of inflation in Ireland are all quite bunched between 3.3% (Bank of Ireland) 3.5% (Central Bank and European Commission).
Were Minister Burke to consider an hourly increase of 50 cent it would represent a 3.53% increase, bringing the new hourly rate to €14.65.
This would be the equivalent of €29,710 for a 39-hour week, with an additional 11.4% (PRSI) and 1.5% Auto Enrolment.
In real terms, the hourly rate that the employer would pay is €16.54 at this level.
Understanding the real problems
We are very fortunate that this Minister has proven in a number of instances to understand the very real problems that small and medium sized employers encounter.
We sincerely hope that both he and his Cabinet colleagues will reposition the LPC recommendation.
We reproduce a parliamentary question in regards to the LPC 2026 recommendations, in his answer the Minister shows that the 60% median Living Wage rate is very close to the existing National Minimum Wage (NMW) rate – see here
Read more: CSNA updates retailers on Targeted Support Payments
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