No pay increase

willa25

Hi,

I work in a rural post office for the past 7 years. I never got any pay increase in all that time and never asked until last May. Our employer told us she couldn't at the moment, that everything is getting more expensive. Her electricity bill has gone up. So has ours. Her rent and rates haven't changed. Our mortgage has gone up. Postmasters are supposed to get a financial package to help with the cost of maintaining post office. Does anyone know if they actually got it yet. Is there anything else we can do. We are going to approach her again next week but I have a feeling it will be the same response. Feeling very unappreciated 😞

walterking

How do you know rent and rates have not changed? - My rates have gone up.

Business electricity went sky high. Many were paying 70c a unit from sept to Dec.

Similarly with gas if that is used for heating.

Assuming you are paid more than €18,000 you will have received benefit from higher tax free allowance. You would also receive benefit from electricity credit.

Yes, your mortgage might have gone up - if you are not on a tracker you should have been proactive and looked at long term fixing last year. If you are on a tracker, you have benefitted from many years of exceptionally low rates.

But aside from that, people do need a pay rise. Rising by the inflation rate would simply increase inflation further. I've agreed a 5% increase with my staff as they understand that business will be slower as we are in a non-essential bracket.

The good news is the ecb is unlikely to increase further, electricity prices are going to come down as will gas and coal prices. Some food prices will come down too.

markpb

If your employer isn’t willing or unable to give you a pay rise, you need to look at changing jobs. Their costs are more or less irrelevant to you.

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399075#Comment_120399075

What a terrible attitude. The logic is baffling. Benefited from ma higher tax free allowance? That's between them and Revenue. I highly doubt you give your employees additional pay increases when taxes increase.

Should have fixed their mortgage. Easy in hindsight, but I doubt that was your view in Jan 2022. Regardless, benefiting from low rates is nothing with an employers and a really shiity means to justify not increasing pay.

The cost of living always goes up. So does the cost of business. Over a long period, the two should closely match each other. People shouldn't expect to match inflation every year, as long as they are not held back years of low inflation. Perhaps no increase one year might not be fair, but no increase in 7 years is not justifiable, at all. Waffling about tax and low mortgage rates is greaseball boss stuff.

Kurooi

I'd look into changing jobs. 7 years of inflation and no increase at all, surely your personal finances and life have been set back tremendously. On average 5% inflation that's like taking a 30-40% pay cut. Now we're close to 10% record inflation levels you'll be working double hours for a sack of potatoes

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058289679/no-pay-increase

Why do you think your employer should swallow your increase in cost of living on top of their own? Have you done anything in the last sever years that resulted in the prospect of the business being increased - increased revenue? reduced costs? If the only argument you've got is that you think your employer should swallow your additional costs during an economic downturn then it is unlike to go anywhere.

jackboy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399434#Comment_120399434

A pay increase is what increase you get on top of inflation. Not getting inflation adjustment is a pay cut. Getting a pay cut seven years in a row is hard to justify and must be hard to take.

Quitelife

7 years without a pay rise is madness, even mimnimum wage has gone up 20% over past 7 years .

Id ask one last time and if no pay rise spend the next few months trying to get other employment.

Mrs OBumble

You must have been pretty well paid 7 years ago, if your rate from then is still above minimum wage now.

Look for a better job.

Ginger83

No pay review for 7 years says it all about your employer really.

Go and work for someone who appreciates you!

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399445#Comment_120399445

You can make up whatever you like, but the fact is that the OP did not get a pay cut and continued to work there for seven years rather than seek another job. Nobody is entitled to a pay increase for inflation and expecting someone else to swallow your cost of living increase along with their own is not going to work out very well.

Kurooi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399817#Comment_120399817

They work for a post office, a basic stamp increased from 1.10 in 2021 to 1.25 in 2022 to 1.35 just last month in 2023. The price, to me, of postage has increased 22% in 2 years. Nobody up there is suffering the cost, they just slap their customers and employees with it.

jackboy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399817#Comment_120399817

Not getting an inflation adjustment is 100% a pay cut, it’s not making anything up. Just because it’s widely tolerated does not make it right.

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399863#Comment_120399863

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400007#Comment_120400007

As i said, make up what ever justification makes you happy, it will not change the actual fact that the OPs gross salary was not reduced by their employer, therefore they did not receive a pay cut. The cost of living may have gone up, but expecting others to carry your costs are not going to be much of a justification in the eyes of most employers.

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399875#Comment_120399875

I don't know perhaps because they were obviously better and more far seeing in their negotiations than you were perhaps!

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400260#Comment_120400260

Really and what is the logic there then? If the OP felt they could earn more somewhere else they should have moved.

Kurooi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400218#Comment_120400218

Disagree with "most employers", just bad ones and not at all normal. Most Irish employees receive pay rises, the average is 4% (source https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/more-than-half-of-irish-workers-set-to-receive-a-pay-rise-in-year-ahead-41864135.html)

The idea that someone hasn't gotten one in 7 years is absurd. It's on the person for not fighting it out or quitting in all that time , but hats off to the employer for taking a ride here taking advantage of that person for so long.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400244#Comment_120400244

Teacher unions 100% do negotiate pay scales.

Labour economics is very simple: if people leave, employers need to pay more to get replacements. If they don't leave, then there's no need to pay more.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400618#Comment_120400618

They can indeed. Which is why teachers have annual increases, even if they're incompetent.

Perhaps the OP should join the Postal Workers Union, or whatever it's called here.

Geuze

Teachers get the same pay changes as all public servants.

Geuze

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400244#Comment_120400244

Teacher unions are part of ICTU, who negotiate the national pay deals.

(except ASTI?)

walterking

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399146#Comment_120399146

The last budget was very much aimed at reducing the burden of inflation to quell wage increases so that inflation would not spiral.

Yes, I was very vocal on the banking thread telling people to fix for 10+ years whilst very low rates of 2%-2.5% were available.

Unions seem to accept circa 5% is warranted and thankfully understand that excessive increases will lead to further inflation

Most market commentary is suggesting inflation will be under 3% by early next year. Remember we had deflation for a period - you didn't hear people calling for wage cuts then?

Nody

MOD:

@sister blister that's enough of your posting in this thread; you are now thread banned. If I find your posting in a similar style in another thread you'll be permanently banned. This is your one warning on posting style.

Do not reply to this post.

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120400618#Comment_120400618

The person working for a pharmaceutical calling teachers scum? Did not big pharma accept billions of euros and dollars from all over the world to develop a vaccine and then refused license for others to manufacture it to save lives.....all in the name of profit. No wonder you set up a new account.

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120401268#Comment_120401268

Can you point to where you said fix for ten years? I’d love to go back and applaud it, although I’m not sure if 2% @ 10 years was available (not sure if you are saying it is either).

The last budget was an attempt to quell inflation. Through many means. That in no way justifies cancelling pay rises against tax cuts.

And yes there was deflation in 20/21, and also during the GFC. I think you’ll find many people did in fact have paycuts during those years, not as a direct response to inflation, but inversely leading to individual inflation.

It makes more sense to average increases over a longer period compared to tracking each annual year. So that means 5% is fair whether inflation is 2% or 8% any given year.

0% for 7 years is pathetic.

Shauna677

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399075#Comment_120399075

Some food prices will come down too!!!!!!

You are kidding right???

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399434#Comment_120399434

People are not entitled to pay increases?

I’d have assumed that was trolling it was not from a mod and long standing poster. Perhaps not in the case of the OP, as it sounds like a situation lacking any business skills, but vast majority of people will have contractual clauses regarding pay reviews.

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120401655#Comment_120401655

Public sector workers are the only ones I know who automatically get pay review every year.

Most private sector companies have performance reviews, but they're not alway linked to a pay review.

Augme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120403230#Comment_120403230

But Public Sector workers don't get a pay review every year or a pay increase every year. Some do, but not everyone. Once you reach the top of a pay scale you'll only receive a pay increase through negotiated public sector agreements.

Dav010

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120401655#Comment_120401655

That still isn’t an entitlement, it is a negotiated term in an employment contract, those that do not have it, are not entitled to it.

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120403230#Comment_120403230

I didn't mention the word automatically. There is typically very specific contractual language regarding reviews, rarely automatic but saying that they don't exist ever is simply wrong.

To be clear, I'm not suggesting that they apply in the OPS case, sounds its a local rural postofice,

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120403660#Comment_120403660

Contractual terms are entitlements. Whether they were negotiated or otherwise. But I disagree that it must be negotiated, any half decent contract will allow for some means of periodic pay review.

Obviously those that do not have it, are not entitled to it. But surely the inverse is just as obvious, those that do have it, are entitled to it. I didn't claim everyone was entitled to it, but the previous poster claim that nobody was entitled. I'm surprised I have to explain why that is incorrect. Seems pretty basic tbh.