Clondalkin Fianna Fáil Councillor Trevor Gilligan has said shopping centre workers must not be left out of pocket as a result of increasing parking charges at shopping centres across Dublin Mid West.
Cllr Gilligan said “I would urge Shopping Centre owners to scrap parking charges for workers. “However, if this doesn’t happen Government must support shopping centre workers in the form of a tax credit as these charges are nothing more than an expense on attending work. Some of the workers are on minimum wage.”
This comes after Liffey Valley Shopping Centre has indicated they will remove free parking for customers and staff. Staff at the centre will be charged a flat daily rate of €2.50 which for the average full-time worker would cost up to €650 per year. When the staff section is full, using the public car park would cost €2.50 per hour, €75 per week, €300 PM or €3,600PA.
The Square Shopping Centre in Tallaght are also removing free parking and staff at the centre are charged €100 per year. The Clondalkin Councillor continued, “It’s completely unacceptable that those working in shopping centres could be left out of pocket to the tune of €3,600 a year for simply parking their car at their workplace. “This is a further tax on workers which would result in them losing around €5-7K of their gross earnings per year.”
