Disposable income levels dipped slightly in the last three months, but are reported to be in a better state than they have been for the past four years. The Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) released details of their income tracker survey last week, which reveal that, despite an increase since last year in the number of people who believe that their income has either improved or remained the same, one in seven people have no disposable cash at the end of the month.

A total of 1.7m people believe they have 100 euro or less left over when all their bills are paid. The findings of the report demonstrate the growing need for wage recovery across all sectors of the Irish economy.

CBI says fall in real wages cannot go on forever

In the UK, the Confederation of British Industry has warned that the fall in real wages there cannot go on forever and said that the squeeze on household budgets “has taken its toll”.

Director general Jonathan Cridland said he agreed with TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady that a wage rise is needed to encourage consumption and “a greater sense that everybody is sharing" in the UK’s economic recovery. However, the CBI said improvements in take-home pay must come from cuts in national insurance payments and financial childcare supports. He opposed calls for the UK government to raise the minimum wage saying that politicians “cannot create a single job”, a sentiment that is likely to be echoed by employer bodies in Ireland as upward wage pressure increases.