Dunnes Stores workers seek 'life-changing' pay rises

Dunnes Stores workers are seeking a “life-changing” pay rise to keep up with inflation.

The retail workers are also looking for additional annual leave days, improvements to the staff discount scheme and the creation of full-time positions, according to Mandate Trade Union.

“There are multiple pay scales in Dunnes Stores where some workers are on higher wages than others for doing the exact same job.

"We want to harmonise the pay and benefits for all Dunnes workers but we want to ensure pay equality is done in a way that brings the lowest earners up to the top," said Mandate’s National Coordinator Lorraine O’Brien.

“Workers all over the country are struggling right now, yet many employers, like Dunnes Stores, are capable of paying higher wages and improving conditions of employment. Those that can pay, should pay,” said Patrick Killeen, a Dunnes worker from Mayo.

“What we want is a brand new pay scale for all Dunnes Stores workers which provides a decent standard of living and rewards us for our loyalty and experience,” said Killeen.

Specifically, Dunnes workers are aiming to receive a 7.7% increase in wages for those at the lowest point in the pay scale and 7.9% for those at the top.

Inflation is the main driver behind the pay claim, but not the only one, according to Alex Homits, a store steward at Dunnes Stores in Tallaght.

“The pay claim also addresses the stagnating wages of tenured staff, not just the younger staff, who would be below the living wage suggestion by the Low Wage Commission, which is €12.90,” he said.

Homits says that some workers have had to find second jobs in order to maintain their standard of living.

“It obviously affects people differently. I know three people off the top of my head who have double jobs because they don’t get enough hours in Dunnes and also because the wages that they do get aren’t enough.”

He says that only since Mandate Trade Union began lobbying for wage increases have Dunnes workers seen an increase in pay. Before that, he say, wages were stagnant.

“You know, if you’re working somewhere for a long period of time, the decent thing on the part of any employer to do is to recognise that through wage increases, more annual leave, cemented parental leave and things like that,” he said.

Homits says that Dunnes have not engaged with the union to date.

“Formally, Dunnes don’t recognise Mandate Trade Union and that’s also one of the key issues in the pay claim. We do want to be recognised by Dunnes so we’re ale to sit at the negotiating table and not to be disregarded,” he said.

He says that making wages more attractive would help to alleviate understaffing issues at Dunnes Stores around the country.

“It’s quite straightforward, it seems, that low pay and poor conditions, if they were rectified, then the staffing problem would also be fixed.”

There will be a meeting held to discuss the pay claim on August 23 and all Dunnes workers, union or otherwise, are invited to attend. Details of the meeting and the pay claim are available at dunnesworkers.com.