In advance of its HR Leadership Summit in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, has Ibec revealed the headline results of a comprehensive new survey, which found that 71% of companies plan to increase basic pay in 2016.
According to the survey, the median pay increase is set to be 2%, and that in 2015, 67% of companies will award pay increases; an upward revision of the 57% predicted at the start of the year.
The pay rises and recently announced budget tax cuts will see the average workers' take-home income rise by 3% from January next year, and result in a net take home pay increase of about two weeks worth of income in the course of 2016.
Ibec also expects that with the changes in taxation in Budgets 2015 and 2016, along with pay increases in private companies, the average worker will be better off by almost one month’s pay by Christmas 2016, compared with the 2014 holiday period.
Speaking in advance of the HR Leadership Summit Ibec Head of Industrial Relations and HR, Maeve McElwee commented, "Most workers will feel the recovery in their pay packets next year, but we must not lose the hard fought competitive gains of recent years. The focus must remain on job creation.
However, Ibec has also warned that a significant proportion of companies still cannot afford pay rises, and McElwee remarked, “If costs spiral and we lose our competitive edge we will pay for it in jobs.”
“The total cost to business of the minimum wage increase will be in the region of €80 million next year, but the employer PRSI offset will only give €7 million of a rebate in the full year,” she explained.
“This will result in even greater pressure on labour intensive, low margin companies. With unemployment still unacceptably high, the focus must remain on job creation. We cannot allow our cost-base to drift out of line again.”
Ibec's HR Leadership Summit takes place today, 21 October, in the Royal Hospital, bringing together 400 HR directors, managers and business leaders to focus on the theme of 'future workplaces'.
© 2015 - Checkout Magazine by Jenny Whelan.
