Companies

Labour reforms pose ‘most significant threat to cost competitiveness since Celtic Tiger’

Ibec says ‘quite spectacular cost increases’ for companies facing businesses are down to government policy

Minimum wage increases implemented from January 1 have been criticised by employers’ representative groups. Picture: Getty

A series of “unprecedented” cost increases are piling pressure on Irish firms, according to the employers’ group Ibec, which has said labour reforms being implemented by the state pose the “most significant threat to cost competitiveness since the Celtic Tiger”.

Companies are facing several new regulatory requirements in 2024, with a minimum wage increase in force since January 1, and several other measures – including a mandatory pension auto-enrolment scheme, and new tax reporting rules ...