Minimum wage

Introduction

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

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

Since 1 January 2023, the national minimum wage is €11.30 per hour. Some people get sub-minimum rates, such as people aged under 20 (see the ‘Rates’ section below).

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 are on a recognised apprenticeship.

Different rates of pay for certain sectors

Employees in certain sectors, such as the security sector and the cleaning sector, have other minimum rates of pay. The rules for these sectors are set out in Employment Regulation Orders (EROs) made by Joint Labour Committees. You can find out more in our page, Employment agreements and orders.

What does not count as pay?

When calculating the minimum wage, do not include:

• Overtime premium
• Call-out premium
• Service pay (tips paid directly to you)
• Unsocial hours premium
• Tips which are placed in a central fund managed by the employer and paid as part of your wages
• Premiums for working public holidays, Saturdays or Sundays
• Allowances for special or additional duties
• On-call or standby allowances
• Certain payments you receive when absent from work, for example sick pay, holiday pay or pay during health and safety leave
• Payment connected with leaving the employment, including on retirement
• Contributions paid by the employer into any occupational pension scheme available to you
• Redundancy payments
• An advance payment of, for example, salary: the amount involved will be taken into account for the period when you would normally have received it
• Payment in kind or benefit in kind, other than board or lodgings
• Payment not connected with your employment
• Compensation for injury or loss of tools
• Award as part of a staff suggestion scheme
• Loan by the employer to you

Workers not entitled to minimum wage

You are not entitled to receive the national minimum wage if you are:

• Employed by a close relative (for example, a spouse, civil partner or parent), or
• In a statutory apprenticeship, or
• Aged under 20 (see ‘Rates’ below)

My employer cannot pay me the minimum wage

If an employer cannot afford to pay the national minimum wage due to financial difficulty, the Labour Court may exempt them from paying the minimum wage rate for between 3 months and one year. Only one such exemption can be allowed.

The employer must apply to the Labour Court for the exemption, and they must have the consent of a majority of the employees. The employer and the employees must all agree to be bound by the Labour Court decision.

The employer must show that they are unable to pay the national minimum wage and that if they were compelled to do so, they would have to lay off or dismiss employees.

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

Victimisation

If you ask your employer to pay the national minimum wage you are entitled to, you are protected by law from victimisation or dismissal. In addition, if you are dismissed for seeking the national minimum wage, you may bring a claim for unfair dismissal. You can do this regardless of length of service or number of hours worked per week.

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

How to make a complaint

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

If you cannot resolve the problem with your employer, you can complete the online complaint form on workplacerelations.ie. This form gives you 2 options:

1. You can request an investigation by an inspector from the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). The inspector will look into your claim that the national minimum wage is not being paid.
2. You can refer a dispute to a WRC adjudicator. However, you can do this only after asking your employer for a statement outlining the calculation of the average hourly pay. You must refer the dispute within 6 months of receiving the statement. If necessary, the time limit for referral may be extended to a maximum of 12 months. Where the employer fails to give you the statement, the time starts from the date when they should have done so (that is, within four weeks of the request).

Note: Under the National Minimum Wage Act, you cannot refer a complaint about the same dispute to both an adjudicator and an inspector.

If you are alleging victimisation, you should ask your employer to restore your employment conditions to how they were before the victimisation. Where the employer fails to do this within two weeks of the request, you may refer the matter to the WRC adjudicator. You must make this referral within 6 months of the alleged victimisation (which may be extended to a maximum of 12 months).

You can get more information on the national minimum wage from the Workplace Relations Commission’s Information and Customer Service.

Living wage for all

A national living wage will replace the national minimum wage from 2026. The living wage 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.