BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES WAGES COUNCIL WAGE REGULATION ORDER

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 452.60

BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES WAGES COUNCIL WAGE

REGULATION ORDER

10th March, 1980

LEGAL NOTICE 29 of 1980, as amended by Legal Notices 112 of 1990,

27 of 2007, 144 of 2010, 362 of 2012, 334, 444 of 2013, 482 of 2014, 5 of

2016, 97 and 383 of 2017, 104 and 351 of 2019, 469 of 2020, 464 of 2021,

335 of 2022, 286 of 2023, 341 of 2024 and 288 of 2025.

The title of this Order is Beverage Industries Wages

Council Wage Regulation Order.

1. In this Schedule, unless the context otherwise requires -

"customary holidays" means the days (other than Sundays)

declared for the time being to be public holidays by or under the

National Holidays and other Public Holidays Act;

"hours of work" means the time on any day during which

employees are at the disposal of the employer, exclusive of the

intervals allowed for meals and rest;

"outside worker" means a person employed mainly outside the

factory in the distribution and delivery of the employer’s products

and in the collection of the employer’s empty bottles and boxes;

"part-time employee" means an employee whose normal hours of

work, calculated on a weekly basis or on average over a period of

employment of up to one year, are less than the normal hours of

work of a comparable whole-time employee and who is not a

whole-time employee with reduced hours;

"time-and-a-half" and "double-time" mean respectively one and a

half times and twice the minimum rate applicable to the employee;

"wages" means remuneration or earnings, payable in money by

an employer to an employee;

"whole-time employee" means an employee who is deemed to be

a whole-time employee in terms of any recognized conditions of

employment.

2. The minimum weekly remuneration shall be related to a

week of not more than -

(a) forty hours of work in the case of whole-time

employees other than watchmen, and

(b) fifty-two hours of work, spread over a six-day week, in

the case of watchmen.

The provisions set out in the Schedule hereto shall apply to

all employees in respect of whom the Beverage Industries Wages

Council operates.

The minimum weekly remuneration payable to whole-time

employees, both males and females, shall be that shown hereunder

(a) watchmen ...................................... €232.35 x €0.58 -

€233.51

(b) other employees

(i)

aged 20 years or over ..............€232.35 x €0.58 -

€233.51

(ii) aged 18 years or 19 years ................ €229.44

(iii) aged 17 years .................................. €223.29

(iv) aged under 17 years ........................ €220.71

Provided that, where the remuneration is

incremental, the increment shall be awarded annually.

Whole-time employees, other than watchmen, shall be

allowed daily intervals for meals and rest of not less than one hour

in the aggregate in the case of inside workers and of not less than

one and a half hours in the aggregate in the case of outside workers.

Whole-time employees shall be allowed one whole day off

in every period of seven consecutive days.

(1) Whole-time employees, other than watchmen, overtime

outside workers or shift workers, shall be entitled to overtime rates

remuneration as follows -

(a) for all time worked in excess of forty hours in any

calendar week ................................... time-and-a-half;

(b) for all time worked in excess of eight hours on any day

of a five-day week ............................ time-and-a-half;

(c) for all time worked in excess of eight hours on any day

of a five-and-a-half day week ............ time-and-a-half;

(d) for all time worked on any customary holiday, when

such day falls on any day other than Saturday and

Sunday ............................................. time-and-a-half;

(e) for all time worked on Sundays or when a customary

holiday falls on a Saturday ..................... double-time

Provided that any overtime due in accordance with the

provisions of sub-paragraph (b) or (c) of this sub-paragraph shall

only be payable if the total time worked in any calendar week is not

less than forty hours and so long as any reduction, in such number

o f h o u r s , i s n o t t h e r e s u l t o f a n e m p l o y e r ’s o r d e r o r a s a

consequence of a customary holiday occurring on a working day.

(2) Whole-time outside workers may be entitled to overtime

remuneration on a commission basis

Provided that such overtime remuneration may be offset

against any commission paid to the employee so long as the amount

of such commission is not less than the overtime remuneration due

to him at the following rates

(a) for all time worked in excess of forty hours in any

calendar week ................................... time-and-a-half;

(b) for all time worked on any customary holiday, when

such day falls on any day other than Saturday and

Sunday ............................................. time-and-a-half;

(c) for all time worked on Sundays or when a customary

holiday falls on a Saturday ...................... double time.

(3) Shift workers shall be entitled to overtime remuneration as

follows

(a) for all time worked in excess of forty hours in any

calendar week ................................... time-and-a-half;

(b) for all time worked on any customary holiday, when

such a day falls on any day other than a Sunday

.......................................................... time-and-a-half;

(c) for all time worked on a Sunday being in excess of

forty hours in any calendar week ............ double-time.

(4) Watchmen shall be entitled to overtime remuneration as

follows -

(a) for all time worked in excess of fifty-two hours in any

calendar week ................................... time-and-a-half;

(b) for all time worked on any customary holiday,

including Sundays, in excess of fifty-two hours in any

calendar week ........................................ double-time.

(1) In addition to the minimum weekly rest to which

whole-time employees may be entitled under paragraph 5, whole-

time employees shall be entitled to the National Holidays and to all

public holidays with full pay, and to the following vacation leave

not being less than -

(a) four working weeks and one working day during the

calendar years 1988 and 1989;

(b) four working weeks and two working days during the

calendar year 1990;

(c) four working weeks and three working days during the

calendar year 1991;

(d) four working weeks and four working days during the

calendar year 1992 and during any calendar year

thereafter

Provided that when a whole-time employee is in

employment for less than twelve months during any calendar year,

he shall be entitled to such part of the said vacation leave as is in

proportion to the number of months in employment.

(2) For the purpose of this paragraph "vacation leave" means

leave with pay which may be availed of on days agreed upon

between the employer and the employee, provided that one day

vacation leave during 1988 and 1989, two days vacation leave

during 1990, three days vacation leave during 1991 and four days

vacation leave during 1992 and during any calendar year thereafter

shall not form part of any shut-down and shall be granted by the

employer as optional leave in addition to any optional leave the

employee may have been entitled to on the 9th November, 1988.

(1) A whole-time employee shall in every calendar year be

entitled to the equivalent in hours of twelve days sick leave on full

pay, less an amount equal to the sum set for sickness benefit

entitlement at the rate established under the Social Security Act,

and part-time employees shall have a pro rata entitlement to sick

leave in hours on full pay, less an amount equal to the sum set for

sickness benefit entitlement at the rate established under the Social

Security Act, which amount is also to be calculated on a pro rata

basis

Provided that -

(a) the first three days of any claim for sick leave shall be

paid in full by the employer;

(b) a medical certificate covering the period of absence is

produced to the employer on the day of return to work

or, if such period of absence is longer than seven days,

within seven days of the onset of sick leave absence;

(c) employees in receipt of a social security pension in

respect of retirement or widowhood in terms of the

Social Security Act shall, for the purpose of

calculating the sick leave pay due, be deemed to have

received an amount equal to the sum set for sickness

benefit entitlement at the rate established under the

Social Security Act.

(2) When a whole-time employee is in employment for less

than twelve months during any calendar year, he shall be entitled to

such part of the said sick leave as is in proportion to the number of

months in employment.

(3) The employer may require a medical certificate by his own

physician to certify incapacity for work during the period of

absence.

(4) The sick leave entitlement granted by virtue of this

paragraph shall be calculated on the basis provided for annual leave

as specified in regulation 8(1) of the Organisation of Working Time

Regulations.

Whole-time employees shall be entitled to two days leave

on full pay on the occasion of the death of one of the following

relatives: the wife, husband, mother, father (or the person who at

the time was in fact acting as the mother or father of the employee),

son, daughter, brother or sister.

A whole-time employee shall be entitled up to a maximum

of one year injury leave on full pay, less the full amount of any

injury benefit to which such employee may be entitled in terms of

the Social Security Act, if he is injured during the actual discharge

of his duty and such injury is not due to any contributory

negligence on his part or to the contravention by him of any safety

rules laid down by the management.

A whole-time employee shall be allowed three days leave

on full pay on the occasion of his marriage.

A whole-time employee shall be allowed two days leave on

full pay on the occasion of the birth of a child to his wife.

A whole-time employee called for jury service shall be

allowed all necessary time off on full pay to enable him to attend to

such service in Court.

The minimum remuneration payable to part-time

employees of the categories specified in paragraph 3 hereof shall be

pro rata at an hourly rate arrived at by dividing the amount

appearing for the category by the number of hours of work per

week for the relative category

Provided that in no case shall a part-time employee be paid

for less than three hours even if he has performed less than three

hours work.

In cases where the retiring age of a male employee is

expected at the age of sixty years, such employee shall be given the

opportunity by his employer to retain his employment beyond this

age at least until the age of sixty-one years, provided that the

employee in question shall still be allowed, if he so wishes, to retire

at the age of sixty years.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order but is intended to indicate its

applicability).

The provisions of the above Schedule apply to all employees in

any undertaking, or in any part of an undertaking, which consists

wholly or mainly in the bottling or the production of distilled

spirits, wines, malt liquors, soft drinks and carbonated beverages,

and of any other activity so far as it is incidental or ancillary to any

such activity as aforesaid as the undertaking, including, without

prejudice to the generality of the foregoing -

(a) the distilling of ethyl alcohol for all purposes, the

distilling, rectifying and blending of alcoholic liquors;

(b) the production of wines, cider, parry or other

fermented beverages;

BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES WAGES

COUNCIL WAGE REGULATION

(c) the production of malt or malt liquors, such as beer,

ale, porter and stout, and

(d) the manufacture of non-alcoholic beverages, such as

soft drinks and carbonated mineral waters.