A Dublin weighting allowance should be introduced to mitigate the impact of “greedy landlords”, a Lunchtime Live listener has said.  

The cost of living is noticeably higher in Dublin and some have suggested part of the solution is paying public servants more. 

Lunchtime Live listener Paul said his firm paid him extra when he lived in London and thinks workers in Dublin should get the same. 

“I lived in London for 25 years and the difference between me in London and a fellow worker at the same firm in the Midlands [was] my two bedroom flat was more expensive than his three bedroom semi with a garden,” he explained. 

“So, we fought for a London weighting allowance - and we got it and we got it index linked.” 

The allowance was the cause of some unhappiness among Paul’s regional colleagues but he thinks workers in more expensive cities deserve higher pay. 

“I saw an article that says the average cost of a house in Dublin is €520,000,” he said. 

“That’s an awful lot of money when everybody’s getting the same sort of wage as, say, here in down in Kerry where I am or in Dublin. 

“You have to pay people up in Dublin more money - and not just health workers; everybody who lives there because the cost of housing is going up. 

“Plus, there are greedy landlords - but there are greedy landlords all over the country, I suppose. 

“You’ve got to give somebody just a breathing space, so [they] can go on holiday once a year, et cetera, et cetera.” 

View of the St James's Gate from the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin Ireland, St. James's Gate Brewery, Guinness

The high cost of housing has been linked to a recruitment crisis in Dublin schools but Pobalscoil Neasáin Principal Pat McKenna said a Dublin allowance would be fraught with complexities. 

“Any allowance that gives a greater salary [to] a teacher will attract people to stay within the profession - and possibly to stay within Ireland,” he said. 

“But I think there are huge challenges to a Dublin allowance; I have teachers who live in Meath… they travel into Baldoyle and vice versa. 

“So, how do you differentiate between someone who’s in the city and travelling out versus coming in?” 

In February, the Labour Party called for a Dublin allowance but Mr McKenna noted unions are against it because they believe teachers “no matter where they are, should have equality in terms of their salary”.

Main image: Dublin's River Liffey is seen in the sunshine with Samuel Beckett Bridge.