There has been a growing demand for butchers of all levels across the country which has led to an increase in salaries this year, according to a recent salary guide by Excel Recruitment.
This year butchers in supermarkets are earning an average salary of €40,000 annually, which is up €3,000 on last year’s levels.
Butchers in a supermarket can earn between €14.50/hr to €17/hr. The annual salary range for butcher managers ranges from €40,000 to €45,000, depending on experience.
While the increases in salaries sound like a “positive outcome”, the director for grocery retail at Excel Recruitment, Nikki Murran said that there are “knock-on effects” on consumers.
The government contributes to price hikes of consumer goods by its recent increase in minimum wage, implementing the sick pay scheme, the pandemic unemployment payment, and by rolling out a mandatory pension, she said.
Butcher demand
The increase in salaries comes from “a steady demand for a talented workforce”, which was a “knock-on effect” of the Covid-19 pandemic, Murran told Agriland.
“A lot of the butchers here would have been international and they went back to the countries they came from during Covid-19.
“Also, there were no apprentice butchers at all coming through the ranks either because they were getting paid more to stay at home,” Murran said.
She added that there has also been an increase in “high end” butcher stores, which have “sucked up some of the more senior talent”.
Commenting that it is a candidate-driven market, Murran said there is a “significant gap” in the market from entry level to skilled butchers.
There has been a shift, not just with offering a higher basic salary, but a “more comprehensive package”, according to the salary guide.
The guide states that there is a special focus this year on “work-life balance”. Many retailers have reduced their work hours from 48 or 45 weekly hours to 39 hours.
Other areas have also been affected by increases in wages, including bakers in supermarkets who also receive an average wage of €40,000 in 2023.
There have been no decreases in any sector as a whole, according to Murran, but there are some of the middle ranks that have not seen an increase.