Latest advice on minimum wage changes

Generally, the amount of pay you get for working is agreed between you and your employer. Pay negotiations usually happen when you get a job offer.

However, most employees are entitled to a minimum wage under the National Minimum Wage Act 2000.

From January 1, 2025, the national minimum wage for people aged 20 and over increased by 80 cents to €13.50 per hour. If you are aged under 20, you may get sub-minimum rates.

The national minimum wage does not stop an employer from offering you a higher wage. You cannot agree to be paid less than the minimum wage or to do unpaid work unless you are employed by a close family relative or on a recognised apprenticeship.

Employees in certain sectors have other minimum rates of pay, for example, the security and cleaning sectors. The rules for these sectors are set out in Employment agreements and orders made by t Labour Committees.

Even if the hourly pay rates are set out in an Employment Regulation Order (ERO), an employer must pay their employees at least the legal minimum wage.

What counts as pay?

For the minimum wage, your gross wage (total pay before any money is deducted, such as tax or pension contributions) includes:

• Your normal basic pay
• Any shift
• Any fee, bonus or commission
• Service charges given through the payroll
• Zero Hours payments

If you get food (known as board) or accommodation (known as lodgings) from your employer, the following amounts are included in the minimum wage calculation:

• Board rates: €1.14 an hour
• Lodging rates: €30 a week or €4.28 a day

Employers must pay a minimum wage to work experience placements, work trials, internships and any other employment practice involving unpaid work or working for room and board.

How is my hourly rate calculated?

By dividing your gross pay by the total number of hours you have worked. However, it must be clear:

• What pay is included
• Which hours are included as working hours
• The pay reference period (whether you are paid weekly, fortnightly or monthly)

How are my working hours calculated?

Your working hours are whichever is longer between the number of hours set out in any document, such as your employment contract, or collective agreement, OR the actual number of hours you worked or were available for work and get paid for. 

Working hours include overtime and travel time where this is part of the job. Time spent on training that your employer approved and is in normal working hours, is also included.

Your working hours do not include the time you are:

• On standby other than at the workplace
• On leave, lay-off, strike, or after payment instead of notice
• Travelling to or from work

Pay reference period

Your employer selects the period, known as the pay reference period, to calculate the average hourly pay - for example, a week, fortnight, or month (but no longer than a month).

Your employer must include details of the pay reference period in your statement of employment conditions. You can ask your employer for a written statement of your average rate of pay for any pay reference period within the last 12 months. The employer has 4 weeks to give you the statement.

What does not count as pay?

When calculating the minimum wage, do not include overtime , call-out , unsocial hours , s for working public holidays, Saturdays or Sundays, allowances for special or additional duties, on-call or standby allowances, service pay (tips paid directly to you), tips placed in a central fund and paid as part of your wages, certain payments you get when absent from work, for example sick pay, holiday pay or pay during health and safety leave, payments you get when leaving your job, including on retirement, contributions by your employer into an occupational pension scheme, redundancy payments, an advance payment of, for example, your salary - the advance is taken into for the period you would normally have got it.

There are other areas that do not count as pay, check with your local CIC branch.

What are the current minimum rates of pay?

From January 1, 2025, thse are

20 and over €13.50

19 €12.15

18 €10.80

Under 18 €9.45

What happens if my employer cannot pay me the minimum wage?

If your employer cannot afford to pay the minimum wage due to financial difficulty, the Labour Court can give them permission, or exempt them from paying the minimum wage rate for between three months and one year. Only one exemption is allowed.

The employer must apply to the Labour Court for the exemption, and must have the agreement of a majority of employees. The employer and the employees must all agree to follow the decision of the Labour Court.

The employer must show they are unable to pay the minimum wage and that if they had to pay it, they would need to lay off or dismiss employees.

Employers can only be exempt from paying the full rate of the minimum wage. They cannot be exempt from paying the reduced rate (for example, to employees under 18).

What are my options if I feel I am victimised by my employer for requesting the minimum wage?

If you ask your employer to pay the minimum wage, you are protected by law from victimisation or dismissal.

If you are dismissed for asking for the minimum wage, you can bring a claim for unfair dismissal. You can do this no matter how long you have worked for your employer or how many hours you work each week.

If you are due an increase under the National Minimum Wage Act, your employer may try to cut your working hours to avoid an increase in the overall cost of your pay. However, they cannot do this without also reducing your duties or the amount of work.

If you are not getting the minimum wage, you should speak with your employer first.

If you cannot resolve the problem, you can complete the online complaint form on workplacerelations.ie.

This form allows you to either request an investigation by an inspector from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), or refer a dispute to a WRC adjudicator.

What is the Living wage for all?

This will replace the national minimum wage from 2026, and will be set at 60% of the median wage in any given year.

The national minimum wage will remain in place until the 60% living wage is fully phased in. The national minimum wage will increase over the years as usual.