Business Today Newsletter

Stiffing students; private sector wage demands; and breaking capitalism’s rules and winning

The best news, analysis and comment from The Irish Times business desk

Dedicated student accommodation providers are forcing families to pay up to €3,000 for rooms they will not need for 10 weeks after the college years ends. Photograph: iStock

Dominic Coyle's face
Dominic Coyle
Mon Feb 12 2024 - 06:30

Government Ministers have instructed their officials to “engage” with student housing operators after two of the big players in the sector said they will offer students only 51-week tenancies for the 2024/25 academic year, costing families up to €3,000 for accommodation they will not use.

Trade unions in the private sector should push for wage increases of between 4 per cent and 6 per cent this year as workers try to recover some ground on the back of a fall in real wages in each of the past two years, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions says. Work correspondent Emmet Malone explains how they got to those numbers.

Up at Fitzpatrick’s Castle Hotel in Killiney, brothers and third-generation hoteliers Mark and Joseph Scott-Lennon are taking control of the business founded by their grandfather Paddy Fitzpatrick and run for that past 21 years by their mother Eithne Fitzpatrick Scott-Lennon,

Ireland’s construction sector slowed down for the 12th time in the past 13 months, according to new purchasing managers index figures, but there is some hope for the near future with companies hiring again.

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Vibecession is the word apparently for just under 40 per cent of Irish people whose personal finances have worsened over the last 12 months despite some positive top-line economic news. And they’re not optimistic about their prospects either, according to a new survey. Conor Pope reports.

Pilita Clark talks to an inventor who broke all the rules of 21st century capitalism and still managed to build a successful business on the back of simple ideas.

In our opinion piece this week, Danny Mansergh of Mercer Ireland’s Careers Practice argues that progress might be slow but the gender pay gap is shrinking.

And finally, Ian Curran reports on an Irish wellness and journaling business born out of leukaemia diagnosis which has welcomed a Dragon’s Den investor who agreed to put €94,000 into their business in return for a 5 per cent stake as a “perfect fit”.

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