Vol. 532 No. 4
206 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Defence the basis on which Department has withdrawn entitlement to sick benefit in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; if steps will be taken to immediately restore the benefits of the scheme to him; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8011/01]
My Department operates a sick pay scheme designed to protect employees to a certain extent against loss of earnings which may occur if they are unavoidably absent from work due to illness. It is a requirement of the scheme that all claims for payment of social welfare disability benefit must be forwarded, in the first instance, to my Department for onward transmission to the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs.
In the case under reference, the employee concerned was removed from the benefits of the sick pay scheme, with effect from 22 November 2000, because of his repeated failure to comply with the terms of the scheme.
The question of restoring the benefits of the sick pay scheme to the employee concerned will be examined when he gives an undertaking, through his trade union if he wishes, to comply in future with the terms of the scheme and with the procedure for claiming sick pay entitlement.
