Report finds workers need [euro]12.30 an hour to keep pace with rent costs.

IRISH workers need the minimum wage raised to at least [euro]12.30 an hour due to rising rent costs, it was claimed yesterday.

The Living Wage Technical Group found weekly accommodation costs for a living wage worker in Dublin climbed by [euro]21.80, while the rest of the country saw a jump of roughly [euro]9.27 per week.

The minimum wage - currently [euro]9.80 - is an hourly rate that should provide workers with enough income to allow them to live reasonably comfortably. It differs from the National Minimum Wage, which is based in law and not tied to the cost of living.

The report said: "For 2019 it is the large increase in housing costs that has dominated the calculation and driven the 40c increase."

Labour's employment spokesman Senator Ged Nash added: "Around 137,000 people - one in every 13 workers - was earning the minimum wage last year.

"This should be the year the Government commits to working towards a real living wage. People on the minimum wage experience stress and precariousness in their finances as part of their everyday lives.

"This should not be an acceptable state of affairs for anyone who works for a living. Everyone deserves a decent wage for a day's work."