Cost of Living: One of the biggest drivers to the cost of living is the rapidly rising cost of employment. Ireland’s min-wage looks set to rise in the next budget by 5.6% to €14.94 or €31,080 annually. But the true cost of this to a business is €35,100 per employee after PRSI of 11.4% and 1.5% pension auto-enrolment. This is all before annual-leave cover, insurance, training, uniforms, equipment, rates, tolls, and sick leave etc. If the proposed min-wage increase goes ahead, the basic cost of employing a worker will be roughly 50% higher than it was in 2020!! This is not sustainable.... Especially when businesses are also absorbing higher energy, fuel and financing costs. In order to be able to afford a minimum wage employee costs of €35,100, a businesses must then generate that money through VAT-inclusive customer sales: So if the business' VAT is 23% that means €43,173 in customer sales. or if the VAT rate is 13.5% that means €39,839 in customer sales. This all assumes 100% margin. A typical café trying to keep wages at 30–35% of sales may need ~€128,000 in customer spending to support just one minimum-wage position. So expect €5 coffees and €10 pints. Businesses cannot continually absorb these increases: they eventually either raise prices, reduce staffing or close. The worst thing about all this is that very little of these extra costs actually go to the worker in take home pay..... its mostly all tax!!!