Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 15 May 1996

Vol. 465 No. 4

Written Answers. - Home Help Statistics.

Patrick J. Morley

Question:

101 Mr. Morley asked the Minister for Health the number of home helps employed by each of the eight health boards in a full-time and part-time capacity; and the wages paid to each category of employee by the various health boards. [9840/96]

Minister for Health (Mr. Noonan,

Limerick East): The number of home helps employed on a part-time or full-time basis by health boards are tabulated as follows. It should be noted that these data relate to 1995.

Health Board	No. of Part-time Home Helps	No. of Full-time Home Helps
Eastern Health Board	3,403	—
Midland Health Board	605	14
Mid-Western Health Board	1,045	8
North Eastern Health Board	1,460	—
North Western Health Board	364	36
South Eastern Health Board	1,146	4
Southern Health Board	2,314	—
Western Health Board	878	64
Total	11,215	126

The salary scale for full-time home helps with effect from 1 June 1995 is in the range of £199.88 - £211.62 per week. This is the same rate as applies in the health services to group 1 non-officer grades. This scale applies throughout the country and is increased from time to time in accordance with increases granted to non-nursing personnel. With regard to persons engaged in the home help service on a part-time basis, the position is that the rate of remuneration varies considerably throughout the country. In particular in the Eastern Health Board area, the service is provided wholly by voluntary groups which accounts for the wide variation within the area. In all boards the rates are determined by the particular requirements and the type of task undertaken in individual cases.

It should be noted that payments made to part-time home helps do not come within the scope of the PAYE system. Neither is such income taken into account for the purposes of a means test where a part-time home help — or the spouse of a part-time home help — is in receipt of a means tested social welfare payment.

The average rate currently applying in the health boards are as follows:

Eastern Health Board	£2.00 - £4.00(min-max)
Midland Health Board	£3.00 - £3.50(min-max)
Mid-Western Health Board	£2.72
North Eastern Health Board	£1.45
North Western Health Board	£2.95
South Eastern Health Board	£2.00
Southern Health Board	£1.40
Western Health Board	£1.00