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Social Welfare Benefits.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 November 2004

Wednesday, 17 November 2004

Questions (260, 261)

Arthur Morgan

Question:

300 Mr. Morgan asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he is considering introducing employment rights legislation in respect of sick pay and sick leave; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28761/04]

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Written answers

Responsibility for employment rights issues such as entitlement to sick leave lies primarily with my colleague the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment and I understand that the Deputy has put down a question to him in this regard already. As far as my Department is concerned, employees who are insured may be entitled to the social insurance based income support payment disability benefit, DB. This payment is made by the Department to persons who are unable to work due to illness and who satisfy the contribution conditions. Disability benefit is not normally paid for the first three days of illness, known as waiting days, but is payable for up to 52 weeks if the insured person has between 52 and 259 paid contributions and up until the age of 66 if a person has a total of 260 weeks or more paid contributions since entering employment. Disability benefit is currently paid at €134.8 per week with additional payments for dependants.

Some Irish employees also have access to occupational sick pay schemes administered by their employers which may or may not be integrated with the DB payment. This is a matter between employers and employees whether individually or as part of collective agreements. A number of countries operate a system known as statutory sick pay, SSP, which involves transferring the responsibility for administering sick pay for employees to their employers. Under a statutory sick pay scheme, an employer would be obliged by law to provide a certain minimum standard of pay in the event of illness for a certain minimum period. As part of the Government programme of reviewing expenditure programmes, my Department published a review of illness and disability payment schemes. The working group which carried out the review considered that an examination of the possible introduction of SSP would have merit from an efficiency and effectiveness viewpoint.

As a first step, it was considered that current sick pay arrangements by employers should be examined in detail and the potential for change assessed. There are no immediate plans to carry out such an examination but the issue will be kept under review by my Department.

Bernard Allen

Question:

301 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will investigate the case of a person (details supplied) in County Cork. [28781/04]

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The Southern Health Board was contacted regarding this case and has advised the person concerned that was in receipt of basic supplementary welfare allowance pending the outcome of an application for one-parent family payment from my Department.

Following a review of her claim the board was in possession of information which suggested a change in her circumstances had occurred. The board wrote to the person concerned requesting that she provide clarification regarding her means and circumstances. After she failed to comply with this request payment of her allowance was withdrawn.

The board has further advised that clarification sought has now been received and that payment of a basic supplementary welfare allowance, at a rate appropriate to her circumstances, has been restored with retrospective effect.

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