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Opinion The future of Irish jobs looks precarious

‘If and when’ contracts and other insecure forms of employment are becoming the norm in some industries, we need regulation to make all work decent, writes Marie Sherlock.

PRECARIOUS WORK IN Ireland is not new.

Since big Jim Larkin organised workers strikes and founded the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union (ITGWU) in 1909, precarious work has been an almost constant feature of the Irish labour market. 

Casual labour on the docks in Dublin since the turn of the 20th century and agricultural labourers working across thousands of Irish farms are the predecessors of the fixed term workers who emerged in the 1990s.

In the early 2000s workplace innovations saw the development of the temporary agency worker and more recently we have seen a growing number of workers across many industries employed on ‘if and when’ contracts.

Each time, the union movement has responded by organising workers in those sectors and in latter years ensuring that legislative protections are put in place to create a level playing field between permanent and insecure workers.

Now we face a new set of challenges.

Technology Transforming Work

Technology is transforming how most of us work. Increasing automation and the digitalisation of production are transforming how firms produce. The emergence of digital platform companies is transforming how companies are organised.

With regard to the impact on job quality from all of these innovations, the most obvious concerns lie with the emergence of digital platforms and so-called ‘crowdsourcing’. 

‘Gig work’ has always existed in sectors such as the arts and media. However, the growth of digital platforms has meant that this work, also known as ‘crowd employment’ is now becoming a more common feature in conventional sectors.

In their review of new forms of work, Eurofound highlight that this work can encompass anything from food delivery, transport, personal services and desk-based work such as graphic design, marketing and website management.

In how they are organised, digital platform companies are radically altering how firms recruit, manage and retain staff.

They depend on highly automated digital processes to connect their services with their customer. These services are remotely provided by workers whose only tool is typically their computer or digital device and a pool of workers usually compete for this work.

The (almost) zero marginal cost of taking on workers means that firms can scale up or scale down in a way that is unrecognisable to almost all conventional firms who directly employ their workers.

Is it Prevalent in Ireland?

The truth is that we don’t know.

Some companies like Uber are precluded from operating here due to tight regulation as to who can provide taxi services. But walk around Dublin and you’ll see a new breed of couriers on bikes – this time delivering meals.

There is a less obvious but just as significant group of platform workers operating out of their homes or in the growing stock of short-term rental offices.

One potential indicator is the emergence of serviced office companies here in Ireland. Although not exclusively aimed at gig workers, serviced office companies play a key role in the gig economy by renting out ‘hot desks’ and temporary office space to workers on an hourly, daily or weekly basis.

In Dublin alone, the largest real estate brokers are reporting huge growth in this area in a very short period. By the end of 2018, it is expected that serviced office space will have mushroomed to over 20,000 square meters in the Dublin area- that’s enough space for between 4,000 and 7,000 gig workers.

Some people see platform work as a great innovation for micro-entrepreneurs.

However, a 2015 ILO survey of crowd workers on Amazon’s Mechanical Turk platform and the Crowdflower platform presents a very different picture.

They found that for 38% of US-based respondents, crowd working was the main source of income with an average of 22 hours work per week, earning 77% or less of the federal wage and that they spent 18 minutes seeking out work – for every hour worked.

Put another way, these workers spend almost a quarter of their working week doing unpaid work in order to generate paid work, which also happens to be extremely low paid.

But digital workers are a small minority of all workers and precarious employment is growing across industry. 

Estimates based on the CSO labour force survey found that in 2017 some 9% of all plant and processing jobs were in temporary contracts, up from 5% in 2007.  Those working in education have seen a rise in the numbers on fixed-term contracts now one in seven people in that sector is not on a permanent, secure contract.

On the ground, SIPTU members report that in hospitality and manufacturing, temporary work is on the increase while in construction, our members tell us that there has been a dramatic reduction in direct employment.

Instead, the bulk of general operative work in construction is now  via temporary work agencies.

Future Challenges

Looking ahead, a key challenge to decent work may well emerge with the increased demand for care sector workers over future decades.

This will necessitate significant recruitment and from SIPTU’s detailed knowledge of the sector, a lot of private sector care work remains precarious with part-time or variable hours and low pay.

According to the International Labour Organisation, which is tasked with setting international labour standards and the promotion of decent work, the goal must not be to make all work standard, but rather to make all work decent.

That is why SIPTU and ICTU are pushing politicians to ensure we get the Employment Miscellaneous Provisions Bill passed through the Oireachtas.

It sets a threshold of decency for new workers in being able to access a contract of employment within the first five days. 

The proposed legislation would effectively eliminate ‘zero hour’ contracts for almost all types of work (with a number of exceptions) as a wage floor is set below which the employee’s wages cannot drop, irrespective of hours actually worked.

Similarly for ‘if and when’ employees whose hours can be above or below their contracted hours, a wage floor would be put in place.

Collective bargaining is the only real tool to improve worker’s living standards. Many SIPTU members have found themselves on permanent contracts but working variable hours in sectors such as distribution, aviation or health or working in temporary ill-defined lecturing roles in education.

It was only when workers came together as SIPTU members and made their case collectively that they were able to achieve higher levels of guaranteed paid hours or improved employment status as full time, permanent workers.

In the world of digital platforms, the challenge to organising workers is enormous.

European Solutions

The German union IG Metall has led the way by agreeing to a crowdsourcing code of conduct with eight German-based digital platform companies, while Delivery Hero, a food delivery service has signed an agreement with EFFAT- the European confederation of unions covering food, agriculture and tourism.

Likewise in Austria, a works council has been established in the Foodora food delivery company.

While in Denmark, the 3F union entered into a collective agreement with digital platform company; Hilfr.dk which provides private cleaning services. The agreement claimed to be the world’s first, covers minimum wages, sick pay, holiday pay and pensions.

For trade unions here in Ireland, our challenge is to overcome worker fear and employer hostility and increase our membership where precariousness is greatest.

We know that for workers the best protection against precariousness is through collective bargaining and the security of having their terms and conditions negotiated and enforced.

Marie Sherlock is an economist with SIPTU

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31 Comments
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    Mute Tarraing Mo Liathróidí
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    May 5th 2021, 2:29 PM

    So now they realise that people will travel north for cheap booze if they put up the prices here, who would have ever guessed that lads..

    499
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    Mute Mill Miller
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    May 5th 2021, 2:43 PM

    @Tarraing Mo Liathróidí: I won’t travel ,, just the money I give to charity ,, that will be cut ,, ..what a government ,,,

    86
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    Mute Nameo Maximus
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    May 5th 2021, 2:47 PM

    @Mill Miller: It’ll likely be the more expensive healthy stuff getting the chop for me, bottle of vino vs salad is just a no brainer!

    61
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    Mute John Fairclough
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    May 5th 2021, 2:43 PM

    They have made owning a home so expensive, no one can afford it. Now they want to do the same with alcohol.

    317
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    Mute Martin Galvin
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    May 5th 2021, 7:46 PM

    @John Fairclough: Yeah, we’ll soon have to rent a bottle of Jameson’s for a few swigs …..

    30
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    Mute JillyBean
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    May 5th 2021, 2:31 PM

    And the Ni executive will laugh back at them

    358
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    Mute ed w
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    May 5th 2021, 2:54 PM

    @JillyBean: I thought ni executive already had a plan to bring this in

    13
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    Mute Nigel o'Neill
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    May 5th 2021, 2:55 PM

    @JillyBean: hopefully and they should

    22
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    Mute mar
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    May 5th 2021, 2:47 PM

    Varadkar said the consequences of this measure “should result in around 200 fewer alcohol-related deaths, and 6,000 fewer hospital admissions per year”. ‘

    Absolute m0r0ns. I’m sure the booze curtains that supermarkets had to install have already saved thousands of lives as well. ffs

    261
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    Mute Mark
    Favourite Mark
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    May 5th 2021, 2:36 PM

    Newry will be booming again, car loads of gargle coming back

    258
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    Mute The Risen
    Favourite The Risen
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    May 5th 2021, 3:00 PM

    Another tax on the poor, as usual. I wouldn’t imagine too many of Leos and Paschals buddys spend less than 7 quid on a bottle of wine. All this measure will do is leave less disposable income in the pockets of families where there is alcohol dependency.

    252
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    Mute Iblis
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    May 5th 2021, 2:35 PM

    The equivalent of the US telling Canada how to price things. I hope you are sent packing. G085h1t35

    289
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    Mute Adam Murphy
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    May 5th 2021, 3:31 PM

    Stephen Donnelly doesn’t think people will travel to NI to buy cheap vodka, because they’d be spending more on petrol than the €7 they’d save on the Vodka
    Obviously the concept of buying more than one thing at a time is alien to him…

    206
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    Mute Honeybee
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    May 5th 2021, 2:31 PM

    Lets hope the northern executive ignore them.

    284
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    Mute Nigel o'Neill
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    May 5th 2021, 2:55 PM

    Lol.. Let’s put pressure on another jurisdiction to change its laws to match and suit us… Couldn’t make it up

    180
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    Mute Peadár Ó'Cearnacháin
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    May 5th 2021, 3:23 PM

    This is a new tax on mere mortals that want to stay at home and not go to a pub when they reopen and enjoy a beer or glass of wine in their own homes. Irish ministers giving a knee up to the publicians….. This is nothing to do with health….its all about lost revenue.

    169
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    Mute Rab C Nesbitt
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    May 5th 2021, 2:49 PM

    The penny just dropped with Egghead that the horse has bolted…….over the border.
    Talk about a cart before the horse legislation. Incompetence of the highest order

    175
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    Mute John Mc Donagh
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    May 5th 2021, 2:36 PM

    Goobshiites, not content with spoiling the fun in their own patch, they want to spoil it
    in somebody else’s as well

    248
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    Mute SprintFitz
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    May 5th 2021, 3:07 PM

    That whole business of the government, and not the market setting the prices of things doesn’t seem legal to me.

    108
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    Mute Earth Traveller
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    May 5th 2021, 4:33 PM

    @SprintFitz: It’s called communism. I remember it from the 1980s in Eastern Europe. It didn’t work well there either.

    60
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    Mute On the right side
    Favourite On the right side
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    May 5th 2021, 8:03 PM

    @Earth Traveller:

    Socialism: You have 2 cows, give 1 cow to your neighbour

    Communism: You have 2 cows, give both cows to the government and they might give you some milk

    Fascism: You have 2 cows, give all the milk to the government and the government sells it

    Capitalism: You have 2 cows, sell 1 cow and buy a bull

    Anarchism: You have 2 cows, keep both cows, shoot the government and steal a cow.

    18
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    Mute Mark
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    May 5th 2021, 2:35 PM

    Newry will be booming again, car loads of gargle

    112
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    Mute Tony Humphreys
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    May 5th 2021, 3:00 PM

    All those fireworks warehouses on the border will now stock booze too!

    104
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    Mute Fiona Fitzgerald
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    May 5th 2021, 3:26 PM

    Sure what could possibly go wrong?

    41
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    Mute paul mccoy
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    May 5th 2021, 3:16 PM

    They have some neck asking the northern executive to do the same . If I were them I’d tell them in no uncertain terms to Fock off.

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    Mute Geoff Bateman
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    May 5th 2021, 3:43 PM

    Nah, just another tax to get more money in for the massive amount they have borrowed already

    65
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    Mute Earth Traveller
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    May 5th 2021, 4:35 PM

    @Geoff Bateman: It’s not tax. The extra money goes into the pockets of those who sell alcohol. Why are we not hearing how this will destroy rural Ireland from the usual sources?

    26
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    Mute Lynne
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    May 5th 2021, 4:27 PM

    The thing is, even now, before this tax hike is introduced, there are better deals to be had on alcohol by travelling to NI.
    It’ll get worse when this is introduced and once people get used to the journey, it’ll be commonplace to go.

    55
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    Mute Cookie
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    May 5th 2021, 4:11 PM

    There’s little good about the DUP but hopefully they will make a big noise about refusing to cooperate on this.

    53
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    Mute Cookie
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    May 5th 2021, 4:59 PM

    Is alcohol to be banned in Dail Eireann?

    55
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    Mute IP.Man
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    May 5th 2021, 3:14 PM

    Why ministers are not put more pressure on their money pockets to prevent more tax money from flooding into it. They acting like priests, restriction prohibitions, taking away individuality…

    54
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    Mute Patrick Daly
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    May 5th 2021, 5:00 PM

    Turning into a nanny state. And by the way anyone know the address of the place selling pints for €1.93?

    51
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    Mute Brian Haines
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    May 5th 2021, 3:39 PM

    ULSTER SAYS NO !

    66
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    Mute Life in no motion
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    May 5th 2021, 6:05 PM

    I don’t remember €22.09 bottles being sold anywhere!

    Ireland is the 2nd dearest in the EU. How does that equate to having “cheap” alcohol? Why is this not a tax so the money is put into the exchequer? What will happen once the gap between cheap and premium brands is narrowed and the inevitable price increase happens?

    Do people honestly think an alcoholic will skip his fix because it costs more? Other things will be dropped to accommodate

    Why do I deserve a price increase because I want 4 cans on a Friday night? Leo said he’d look after those who get up early. I guess anyone who drinks won’t be getting up early after a few cans so….

    This has AAI (tax payer funded lobby group) and VFI/LVA allllllll over it

    To put the icing on the cake, alcohol consumption is DOWN 6.5% on last year

    Fupping baxtards

    48
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    Mute Jonathan
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    May 5th 2021, 4:06 PM

    We’re a joke

    61
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    Mute Seamus
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    May 5th 2021, 3:17 PM

    So they don’t want to tax it. Then how is the price going up from 13 to 20 for a nagan of vodka? Is the offy owners make 7 extra quid.?

    41
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    Mute Divad Nayr
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    May 5th 2021, 3:09 PM

    I hope they tell him to f off

    69
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    Mute Liam O Connor
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    May 5th 2021, 4:53 PM

    Another co##upt act by a co##upt government being dictated to by Sir Tony!

    44
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    Mute Peter Connolly
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    May 5th 2021, 5:21 PM

    Not happy interfering with our market they are trying to dictate the north’s as well

    37
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    Mute The Firestarter
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    May 5th 2021, 6:01 PM

    The funny thing is that they try to pretend that it’s because they are so concerned about our drinking habits, when in reality it’s because the sale of alcohol is way down, and they need to recoup their losses somehow.

    33
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    Mute Davey Ohanlon
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    May 5th 2021, 5:39 PM

    “What we will be doing is putting pressure on the Northern Ireland Executive and on the parties in Northern Ireland to follow suit”

    And how exactly are they going to put them under “pressure?

    25
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    Mute Barry Lynch
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    May 5th 2021, 5:14 PM

    Ulster says NO

    21
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    Mute Seanboy
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    May 5th 2021, 6:19 PM

    This is the reward for the vintners association. Obey the lock down rules and we’ll force the plebs back into the pubs you could see this coming a mile away

    21
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    Mute Ciaran Maher
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    May 5th 2021, 8:39 PM

    If the government is really so concerned about alcohol abuse in this country, then they should remove the dail bar and lead by example.
    No point in pontificating about alcohol when they have a bar in their workplace.

    19
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    Mute Alan Wilson
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    May 5th 2021, 5:04 PM

    The DUP listening to southern politicians

    17
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    Mute Christy Mc Carthy
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    May 5th 2021, 5:15 PM

    I will be brewing my own as soon as the equipment is back online as it’s sold out everywhere

    16
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    Mute Dave
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    May 5th 2021, 5:17 PM

    @Christy Mc Carthy: 100% I have some equipment to get myself started but looking to go to all grain soon enough, i will buy form Amazon… Happy Brewing !

    18
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    Mute Dean Cinnsealach
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    May 5th 2021, 5:16 PM

    Ulster says NO

    11
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    Mute Stephen Campbell
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    May 6th 2021, 12:02 AM

    sugar tax, VRT, NOX tax on vehicles, VAT on tax, high excise on home heating oil, insurance on levies, high insurance polices because of the inflated value due to tax, loaded premiums for not having health insurance your entire life, terrible access to public health service, high salary taxation etc etc etc and now 58% increase on a can of beer…

    “relieve pressure on the health service” by expecting everyone to be a cabbage… if you have any money left over from all the above, good luck have any for hobbies or interests you can enjoy to feel alive.. depressing..

    11
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    Mute Noel Tate
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    May 5th 2021, 7:57 PM

    This is a handy calculator for working out the cost after MUP comes in…

    Example: A bottle of Miller will cost 1.23 min and so a case of 24 will cost over 29. Big difference for the €18-€20 you can pick them up for now.

    http://www.irishwinereviews.ie/minimum-unit-pricing-calculator

    8
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    Mute Nigel Barlow
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    May 6th 2021, 12:37 AM

    @Noel Tate: good news. After putting in some data my fave double ipa from McGargles could be cheaper! It won’t be though I bet.

    2
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    Mute Alan Wilson
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    May 5th 2021, 5:04 PM

    The DUP listening to southern politicians

    8
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    Mute Anthony Clark
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    May 6th 2021, 12:28 AM

    so.. from Tesco…
    Nikita Imperial Vodka 70Cl = €12.99
    Absolut Swedish Vodka 70Cl = €20

    Will Tesco bump both up 8 euros – because who would buy the cheap stuff if they are priced the same new price of €20.71?

    By the way – should be Metric Vodka not Imperial as sold in “cl” lol.

    4
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    Mute Paul Cunningham
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    May 6th 2021, 6:44 AM

    Implementing an unpopular measure that benefits noone? “Hey, lets make sure that the North is zero craic as well!” Yeah not going to go down well Lads, Remember when they put pressure on us to do something and we rioted?!

    4
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