More than half of businesses are planning a basic pay increase in 2025 but the average hike is lower than last year, according to new research.
The annual CIPD / Industrial Relations News (IRN) Annual Pay and Employment Practices Survey shows that the average planned pay increase for 2025 stands at 3.66%, down from the 4.24% paid last year.
According to the study, 19% of employers are planning to maintain current pay rates, while 22% are undecided.
A quarter of businesses said they are planning to increase non-pay benefits this year and two-thirds are planning to award bonuses this year.
46% of employers say they plan to put more focus on creating an inclusive culture - down from 58% last year.
Only 60% of workplaces have a policy granting leave to support victims of domestic abuse, despite it being a legal requirement.
Two thirds of non-union organisations say they do not intend to engage with unions for collective bargaining, while over one third do not intend to have an information and consultation forum to facilitate this kind of communication in 2025.
CIPD in Ireland is the professional body for the HR industry.
Its Director Mary Connaughton says organisations need to ensure they have measures in place to deal with consulting their workers ahead of the introduction of new rules.
"Under the EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages, member states with less than 80% trade union coverage - such as Ireland - must take steps to promote collective bargaining," Ms Connaughton said.
"It's a matter of time before some measures like the consultation forum in place at just 13% of our respondents are a requirement," she said.
"We would encourage non-union workplaces to get ahead of that point and expand their efforts to communicate with workers effectively on important issues," she added.
More than 220 organisations took part in the survey.
The results are being presented at the Industrial Relations News (IRN) annual conference in Dublin today.
