ESB workers get 5.5% rise and 'compensation' payment

maryishere wrote: »

A report in 2014 said " A new Eurostat report shows that Ireland has the fourth most expensive electricity in the EU and the price rose by 5.1pc in the second half of 2013 compared with just 2.8pc across Europe.
Meanwhile, nearly 1,000 Irish homes had their electricity cut off in March because of failure to pay the bills, the latest figures from the Energy Regulator show.
Consumers in Ireland pay €24.10 per 100 kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity which is 20pc higher than the EU average of €20.10.
It is 34pc higher than our nearest neighbour Britain, the Eurostat report shows.
That makes us the fourth most expensive country in Europe for power behind Denmark, Germany and Cyprus"

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/electricity-prices-fourth-highest-in-eu-after-5pc-rise-30294653.html

We're an island nation we little to no indegnious energy source snd as such are importing nearly all our fuel. we are developing a renewable system that is not dispatchable. Out litigation costs and NIMBISM result in many additional costs when trying to run lines across the country.

We have limited gas supplies and billions we lost trying to extract them.

ESB costs are not to blame

maryishere wrote: »

Have you any link for that? According to the report in the Irish Times ( I gave you the link) ," The average payroll cost for each of ESB’s 7,149 staff was €74,000, with another €7,600 each in pension contributions. Staff also accrued a travel, subsistence and outstanding holiday pay bill of €28.6 million, or €4,000 each. The total average payroll cost is therefore 86k in round figures.

It's on the linking the first post
http://www.rte.ie/news/2016/0414/781841-esb-workers-set-to-receive-5-5-pay-rise/


The ESB confirmed that the average salary for ESB employees at present is €62,000, rising to €72,000 when overtime and expenses are factored in.

The expenses are civil servants rates and are widely published

maryishere wrote: »

Its part of the reason - not the only reason - why we have some of the highest electricity costs in Europe.

Do not forget average wage at the Viridian Group was only €41,000. a year or 2 ago - Viridian previously operated Northern Ireland Electricity until it was sold to the ESB relatively recently.

High electricity costs in Ireland have a knock on effect on businesses here, making them struggle harder to compete with overseas firms. Sometimes businesses have closed down in Ireland citing high electricity costs as one of the reasons, the straw that broke the camels back.

Wages in the north have always being cheaper as have mortgages, health insurance , motor tax etc.
As for viridian they had lots of sales staff with no qualifications who got commission. As a % ESB have far more chartered engineers than viridian so it's not a true comparasion

maryishere wrote: »

Other reports in previous years state that "According to the last annual report the company employs 7,870 staff, which would leave pay and pension costs for each employee costing on average €98,678 per head."

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/average-pay-and-pension-of-esb-workers-near-100000-26632772.html

Exactly other years. Many people have left and replaced with people on lower salaries , expenses have been cut, bonuses too. Wage freezes put in place while inflation increased. Also that figure sounds like it includes employers PRSI and pension costs which aren't taking into account during comparasions with any other salary so straight away add 10.75% on to any salary your comparing it too

ted1 wrote: »

Wages in the north have always being cheaper as have mortgages, health insurance , motor tax etc.
As for viridian they had lots of sales staff with no qualifications who got commission. As a % ESB have far more chartered engineers than viridian so it's not a true comparasion

Not always, but certainly over the past 10-12 years a gap has become apparent in terms of wages between north and south and always between house prices (eastern seaboard prices anyway). Whilst nordie generally pay no health insurance, their local council rates would be on a par with most family's health insurance costs in the south.
That aside, maybe someone could dig out comparisons with direct competitors (insofar as a natural monopoly has such).

Really it matters feck all, just a chance for the begrudgers to moan.

ESB salaries are a fraction of energy costs and the nentwork is excellently maintained. Get your knickers in a twist over generation if you want to be productive.

ted1 wrote: »

https://www.morganmckinley.ie/sites/morganmckinley.ie/files/Salary_Guide_2015_MMK_ENG.pdf

Page 34: http://www.graftonrecruitment.com/downloads/NISalarySurvey2015.pdf

I know that many engineers are leaving ESB To take up jobs with Kirby who are paying 20k more

How do pension benefits compare?

ted1 wrote: »

Less than many of their private competitors and other semi states

Hopefully they use their pay boost to setup their own or boost those pensions then but considering the vast majority of irish peoples ignorance of how public pensions work i unfortunately doubt this is the case and its just another set of people the tax payer is gonna end up burdened with in 20 years time

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

easy to run a massive profit when you are charging amongst the highest prices in europe

Change providers then? They're not the only option anymore you know.

Galwayguy35 wrote: »

2 years ago there was a bad storm and the electricity was gone, they were out working that night and had it back at 11 pm so I think they deserve whatever pay they are on.

And you don't think they get compensated for those hours ?

matchthis wrote: »

When there's storms, floods etc they are out in them getting things going. No power for people who can manage is small, but for the elderly and vulnerable it's a necessity. Didn't an employee die when trying to restore power in the storms over xmas?

As far as I know they helped contribute to some of the floods.
And no I am not blaming them for the rain.

Barrett Orange Pillowcase wrote: »

Just for completeness, they are actually classified as Private Sector.

I always laugh at that piece of semantic chicanery.

Who owns them again ?
Who are their shareholders ?
Who does their CEO report to ?
Who makes appointments to the board ?

Private sector me ar**.

I think it is easy to see the ones with ESB connections around here.

JustShon wrote: »

ESB must've changed from the days my dad was in it. He usually left at 8am and sometimes wouldn't be back until 7pm.

I don't know what they are like now, but dear God some 30 odd years ago they had some of the laziest bunch of wasters working for them.

I went to school directly beside a ESB yard.
The guys never left the yard before 10am as they wandered around trying to figure out who filled the kettle and who sat where in the trucks/vans.
Then they repeated the process in reverse before knocking off time.

And when you watched them out and about, they were almost as bad as the old P&T/Eircom guys at larking about.
They would send two trucks/vans and 6 guys out to cut a few tree branches.
I always wondered why it took 5 guys to watch one guy use a chainsaw. :rolleyes: