According to the RAI, figures released this week from a survey conducted by the RAI with respect to the effect of the abolishment of the JLC/ERO show a marked increase in employment.
The survey of 148 restaurants nationally also focused on the percentage of restaurants who have passed on VAT reductions. The results showed that 61 per cent of members surveyed had taken on more staff in the last two months, and that the number of jobs created was 490 (270 in individual restaurants, 150 jobs in McDonalds restaurants, and 70 in Eddie Rockets).
60 per cent of restaurant owners said that the abolishment of the JLC/ERO was a factor in hiring new staff, and 92 per cent said that the Government’s proposals to re-establish the JLC/ERO in the autumn would affect the employment potential of their business.
However, the Services Industrial Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) has called for greater media scrutiny of claims made by the RAI that the collapse of the JLC/ERO system has led to the creation of new jobs.
According to SIPTU, the RAI has refused to release any information on the restaurants surveyed or on the exact questions that were asked, and the survey seemed to be based on a self-selected sample of businesses and was conducted by the RAI itself.
Adrian Cummins, Chief Executive of the RAI said, “The major factor in the last two months for job creation is the abolishment of the JLC/ERO system; any attempts to re establish these anti-business, anti-employer and anti-job creation mechanisms will grind the recovery of the hospitality sector to a halt.
“The JLC system makes no sense; it forces restaurants which are sometimes operating at a loss to pay a premium over the minimum wage. The RAI has no problem with the minimum wage rate which stands at 8.65 per hour, only 4 per cent of the population are on the minimum wage, but there is a problem when a further 8 per cent on top of the minimum wage is negotiated.”
SIPTU Services Division Officer John King said: “The claims by the RAI are based on a survey which does not appear to meet or even attempt to meet any of the basic scientific requirements for such a study. The RAI has stated clearly that the survey findings are intended to impact on Government policy and influence wage cuts for low paid workers, and we should bear in mind that our present economic problems are in no small part due to a failure to fully test claims made by business representatives in the past. The failure of some media organisations to adequately question these biased and untested claims by the RAI is a disservice to these low paid workers, who have borne the brunt of the recession.”
Among the jobs created are 150 by McDonald’s restaurants, which has elsewhere stated that the hiring of new staff has no connection with the changes to the JLC/ERO system, according to SIPTU.
The Irish restaurant industry employs over 64,000 people and contributes 2 billion in the economy every year. Ireland has the highest excise duty on wines in Europe, and Irish food cost inputs are 24 per cent higher than the European average. But according to the RAI survey, the two top issues affecting restaurants were labour costs and local authority charges. Adrian Cummins said local authority charges is an area were the Government won’t budge: “The local authority rate charge for the average restaurant is 20,000 euro per year, and these figures remained unchanged since the boom years.”
