![[Ireland] High cost of living drops minimum wage from EU’s second to fifth highest](http://gpa.net/cdn/shop/articles/bigstock-Mature-blond-businesswoman-sit-357382403_a9774648-3e5f-4977-9dfb-e4d700bb1c41_1200x.jpg?v=1739838927)
New analysis has revealed that Ireland has the second-highest gross minimum wage among EU countries before the cost of living is taken into account, Irish Independent reports.
Eurostat – the EU’s statistics office – found Ireland ranks second-highest of the 22 countries with an established national minimum wage and one of six countries where the level is above €1,500 per month for working a standard week.
However, Ireland drops down to fifth place when the minimum wage is calculated in Purchasing Power Standards (PPS), that is after adjusting them to price differences across countries.
At €2,281 a month, the gross minimum wage in Ireland reportedly falls just below Luxembourg (€2,637) but above rich EU members like the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France. After adjusting for the cost of living, Ireland sits behind Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Ireland currently comes within the ‘Above PPS 1500’ band; while Spain, Portugal and Greece are ‘Below PPS 1500’. Slovakia, Czechia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Latvia, and Estonia are the six countries in the ‘Below PPS 1,000’ band.
At the start of 2025, Ireland’s national minimum wage increased from an hourly rate of €12.70 to €13.50.
In 2024, Employment and Recruitment Federation (ERF) president Siobhan Kinsella told the Irish Independent that increasing the minimum wage and the rising cost of labour was making Ireland an unsustainable place to do business.
"While obviously important for workers, for a small business this can quickly become unaffordable,” she said.
“Current Government policy is increasing costs, which makes smaller enterprise uncompetitive. We risk local jobs and damaging our economic success, unless we support smaller business to meet the new legislation demands.”
A €1.40 increase to the minimum wage in 2023 was the largest increase to Ireland’s minimum wage since it was first introduced in 2000.
Eurostat reportedly found that the minimum wage in Ireland had increased from €1,461 per month to €2,281 over the last 10 years.
Among the countries in its analysis, Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Poland have seen the highest growth in minimum wage in the EU between January 2015 and January 2025.
Source: Irish Independent
(Quotes via original reporting)
New analysis has revealed that Ireland has the second-highest gross minimum wage among EU countries before the cost of living is taken into account, Irish Independent reports.
Eurostat – the EU’s statistics office – found Ireland ranks second-highest of the 22 countries with an established national minimum wage and one of six countries where the level is above €1,500 per month for working a standard week.
However, Ireland drops down to fifth place when the minimum wage is calculated in Purchasing Power Standards (PPS), that is after adjusting them to price differences across countries.
At €2,281 a month, the gross minimum wage in Ireland reportedly falls just below Luxembourg (€2,637) but above rich EU members like the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France. After adjusting for the cost of living, Ireland sits behind Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Ireland currently comes within the ‘Above PPS 1500’ band; while Spain, Portugal and Greece are ‘Below PPS 1500’. Slovakia, Czechia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Latvia, and Estonia are the six countries in the ‘Below PPS 1,000’ band.
At the start of 2025, Ireland’s national minimum wage increased from an hourly rate of €12.70 to €13.50.
In 2024, Employment and Recruitment Federation (ERF) president Siobhan Kinsella told the Irish Independent that increasing the minimum wage and the rising cost of labour was making Ireland an unsustainable place to do business.
"While obviously important for workers, for a small business this can quickly become unaffordable,” she said.
“Current Government policy is increasing costs, which makes smaller enterprise uncompetitive. We risk local jobs and damaging our economic success, unless we support smaller business to meet the new legislation demands.”
A €1.40 increase to the minimum wage in 2023 was the largest increase to Ireland’s minimum wage since it was first introduced in 2000.
Eurostat reportedly found that the minimum wage in Ireland had increased from €1,461 per month to €2,281 over the last 10 years.
Among the countries in its analysis, Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Poland have seen the highest growth in minimum wage in the EU between January 2015 and January 2025.
Source: Irish Independent
(Quotes via original reporting)