Northern Ireland rural workers land less in their pay

 

 

 

Northern Ireland rural workers land less in their pay

Not only are Northern Ireland workers being paid less and also continuing to fall further behind their UK counterparts but those in rural parts of the country are even worse off.

Median gross monthly pay in the wider UK was £2,274 in July but for Northern Ireland workers it was only £2,103. This represented a 7.5% increase on the year and which was behind both the increase in UK median pay (7.8%) and the Retail Price Index (RPI) of 10.7%.

Commenting, Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said: “The battle to push up pay has been hard fought and it’s certainly far from over. Our economy is broken. Everyday people are still suffering. These statistics are clear – workers in Northern Ireland continue to be paid even less than workers elsewhere in the UK. This is simply unacceptable. Trade unions remain especially vital during a cost-of-living crisis that government is doing little to solve.”

Rurally, things are even worse. The lowest pay is to be found in the southwest, in Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, where median pay is only £1,958 a month (7% below the Northern Ireland average). The next lowest is the unemployment hotspot of Derry City and Strabane where median pay is only £1,981.

The labour market in these areas have fewer public sector workers and a largely rural, non-unionised economy. Employers’ attitudes towards trade unions are often hostile and union-busting normal.

Unite has led efforts to unionise new workforces in both council areas – with the aim of reversing the pay disadvantage – including at Seagate, one of the largest, advanced manufacturers in the northwest, where a high profile and energetic membership drive has despite union-busting tactics, resulted in an application for union recognition being submitted to the labour courts.

Unite has also led the successful opposition to the scrapping of the Agricultural Wages Board that covers 11,000 agricultural workers including many migrant workers. The AWB is the final NI collective bargaining mechanism with a responsibility for private sector workers.

Commenting, Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said: “The battle to push up pay has been hard fought and it’s certainly far from over. Our economy is broken. Everyday people are still suffering. These statistics are clear – workers in Northern Ireland continue to be paid even less than workers elsewhere in the UK. This is simply unacceptable. Trade unions remain especially vital during a cost-of-living crisis that government is doing little to solve.”