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TAX CUTS DESIGNED to prop up the hospitality industry should be axed because businesses haven’t been passing on the savings to their workers or to customers, Ireland’s biggest trade union has said.
But business groups have rejected the claims as nonsense with all of the evidence suggesting the special VAT rate given to hospitality businesses created jobs, reduced prices and drove government revenue.
SIPTU, which represents about 200,000 workers across various industries, wants the 9% special VAT rate introduced in 2011 for the hospitality sector to be dropped if employers refuse to join talks about new conditions for staff.
The union said it will release an “information survey” later today which would back a call for Finance Minister Michael Noonan to put the reduced tax rate back up to 13.5% as the “real financial benefits” of the cut had been kept from customers, employees and the state.
SIPTU divisional organiser John King said employers had been refusing to take part in talks to set fair wages and conditions for workers in hotels and restaurants.
“Employer bodies, the Irish Hotels Federation and the Restaurants Association of Ireland have recently complained of a shortage of skilled labour to meet the demand arising from these positive industry figures for the sector, including of chefs,” he said.
“However, their insistence on driving down wages and conditions of employment over the past five years has contributed to the shortage of qualified and skilled workers in the hospitality sector.”
More jobs but shrinking pay packets
The Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) released information in August which said the reduced VAT rate had created over 31,000 jobs since it was introduced, although less than 22,000 of these were direct jobs in the food and accommodation sectors.
It followed an earlier report from Fáilte Ireland which have the reduced VAT rate the thumbs up for cutting prices for customers, increasing tourist numbers, creating jobs and boosting state revenue.
RAI chief executive Adrian Cummins told TheJournal.ie said he had not idea where the union was getting its figures from as independent research had shown the VAT cut was a success in building jobs and reducing prices.
“We are trying to create jobs in this country and yet SIPTU have come out with this statement against the reduced VAT rate, which has been the greatest job-creation measure the current government has introduced,” he said.
However Recent Central Statistics Office figures revealed staff working in accommodation and food services had suffered among the biggest cuts in their average earnings between 2009 and 2013.
Pay packets in the hospitality trades were down 8.6% over the four-year period and the industry had easily the lowest earnings of any sector in 2013 with workers getting only €16,128 on average.
READ: Pay packets keep shrinking, unless your job’s in IT
READ: Authorities ‘should offer compensation to restaurants’ over water restrictions
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I surveyed a few birds up there in my day.
Leave it exactly as it is. It’s a lovely little walk up, unspoiled and less touristy than most. The area will gain nothing from overdevelopment and extra footfall.
@Terrence Edwards: Hear Hear! A waste of €18 million. Use that money to pay nurses and midwives!
@Terrence Edwards: spot on. It will destroy the area and there’s no way it can take that volume of people and traffic
@Terrence Edwards: exactly. Whilst a beautiful little walk it’s not the right place for this. What little is there will be spoilt. They will spend a fortune doing this and then overcharging to get it all back through car park fees etc etc and people won’t visit.. Its all just wrong.
Nature wildlife is being destroyed, enough is enough of more and more development, they will not be happy until the whole country is a pile of concrete.
No doubt a interpretive centre shop, restaurant and paid parking as part of their plan. What next a hotel on top of lugnaquilla for €20 million of taxpayers money.
@Permo Dermo: a drive-in cinema and a drive thru Krispy kreme, and a multi-story car park for all those who want to park their cars and get out for a walk. Might be a good idea to get the Luas líne up there too, just in case
“Extensive panoramic views of Dublin City”. The last time I was in Dublin City I got a panoramic view of a junkie taking a dump down a side street. For €18 million I hope the views will have a little more to offer.
@Luke Lee: well u don’t think ur gonna spot something like that from such a distance,, u must have some pair of eyes superman xray vision like?
@Luke Lee: there is never a story in here about Dublin without the usual country bumpkin comments.people are obsessed about us.
@John: I don’t think you know what a country bumpkin is.
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: A person, usually from a rural area, the south or small town; who speaks or behaves in a manner that indicates a lack of understanding of the ever changing modern world………..what did you think it meant?
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a shit hole
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a shit hole
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a shit hole
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a shit hole
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a shit hole
@John:
Beacuse it’s literally a siht
@Mark Walsh: a what?
@Mark Walsh: sorry,I did not hear you.also where are you from.probably some hole down the country that you are embarrassed to name.
@John: So, you admit that you used the word incorrectly in the first instance, because your definition does not match your initial usage.
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: what are you on about I said a country bumpkin comment.which means a comment made by a country bumpkin.
@John: the guy has a chip on his shoulder. That does not make him a country bumpkin. Stop using words incorrectly and making inaccurate assumptions. Honestly, people like you and your dumbing down of language are some of the biggest hypocrites.
@Brian Ó Dálaigh: we will have to disagree.i am sticking with my original comment.i know people like him, I meet them all the time in work.
@John: Fair enough, but that just makes you the urban version of him. So, now we have, according to your usage, a country bumpkin and a city bumpkin.
@Luke Lee: you must be bored coming out with a comment like that. Fool
@John: his parents more then likely closely related to one another aswell
@Luke Lee: unfortunately not especially from this cafe and where they are proposing to put it It takes 40mins to walk up and down this hill, people don’t exactly hang around! Complete waste of money.
What about the traffic?
Two cars can hardly pass each up there.
@BAINNE ATHA CLIATH: you’re actually thinking sensibly about it…. that’s the difference
Not an article to use Profanities but, Leave The Fukking Thing Alone…….
Something there would be nice – but this does appear to be a tad overdevelopment – a huge car park and shops on this lovely secluded site.
@Anthony Clark: there’s already something there
I thought it was haunted ??
For Merlin’s Sake, don’t hurt the Falcons, protect them! They have an elephant memory. We don’t need another shooting range. We need wildlife protection not disturbance of the birds of prey. The Dublin mountains/Wicjklow Mountains National Park is there for a reason, as an oases of peace and serenity for animals! Visitors should leave no trace, animals clean afters themselves, why can’t people. Support Ireland’s newest political party for the voiceless animals including Merlins who can’t vote for themselves, join the Animal Rights Party https://www.facebook.com/AnimalRightsIE/
Ur alright thanks, but keep up the good work
A visitors centre and lodge in a remote location steeped in a long history of dark satanic lore. What could possibly go wrong?
@Shelly Levine:
They could get BAM the Builder in!
@Michael Kavanagh:
Bob would be better!!!
@Kenneth Hayden:
More economical anyway!
I’m not too bothered by the bird species up there but it’s a beautiful place and they need to leave it alone.
Beautiful natural part of Dublin. It should remain untouched.
Massy’s Wood below is very pretty too.
They should spend their 19 million on housing
Agreed. It’s a lovely small amenity that foes not need a visitors centre and the likes – a car park yes but nothing more. Completely wrong place for this.
“bird of prey” species in jeopardy
well thats a new one on me,
while I thought the existing traffic jams in the locality
would be the major consideration and not
bird of prey species
Why is a local authority spending money on a potential tourist site, when they have much greater priorities in social housing , in correcting the failed privatisation of refuse services, in establishing safer commuter travel, bike lanes & off street parking? Merlins before picnics,for heavens sake?
Surely, social & business objectives should displace these ” prestige” projects, & leave them to private enterprise, Bord pleanala , Department of Environment, &Bord failte.
It is infuriating to discover that local authorities continue to expend staff & funds to duplicate state bodies, & on private enterprise appropriate items.
Or the place is haunted lol.
have your say