Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 January 2014
349. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will implement changes to social welfare payments to ensure that those who take up employment on a part time basis are not penalised by her Department refusing to pay a bank holiday payment to part time workers, when their employers do not cover these days as the hours worked are insufficient to qualify. [2538/14]
View answerIn order to accrue a statutory entitlement to payment by an employer in respect of a public holiday, employees must have worked at least 40 hours in the 5 weeks ending on the day before the public holiday.
In cases where a casual or part-time employee has no accrued entitlement to pay in respect of a public holiday and where s/he is unemployed on that day, the day may be treated as a day of unemployment for the purposes of jobseeker’s benefit or allowance. A jobseeker's payment may, therefore, be made in respect of that day, subject to all other scheme conditions being satisfied.
