Minimum wage will rise to €11.30 per hour from January 1st, an 80-cent increase from the current wage at €10.50. There are hopes that minimum wage will be phased out and replaced with a living wage by 2026.

But will this increase encourage people to re-join the workforce to save our service industry?

Tony Foley, Emeritus Associate Professor of Economics with the DCU Business school spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning to discuss.