Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 November 2022
124. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Social Protection when it is intended to bring the pay levels of CE supervisors in line with other public sector employees with similar responsibilities and with equivalent educational criteria; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53969/22]
View answerI value the role CE supervisors and assistant supervisors play on over 800 CE schemes in providing work experience and development opportunities to long term unemployed and essential services to local communities. As the Deputy is aware, CE supervisors and assistant supervisors are not employees of the Department and are not public servants. They are employees of individual schemes.
There is no link to grades or rates of pay between CE supervisors and public servants.
The Department, as the funder of CE schemes, received correspondence earlier this year from Fórsa and SIPTU seeking a pay increase for CE supervisors and assistant supervisors. The department has been advised in recent days that Fórsa and SIPTU have referred a pay claim to the conciliation service of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). The WRC has issued an invite to the Department to take part in a conciliation process.
Any increase in pay rates that would potentially increase the overall cost to the state of funding schemes, or state funded activities in the wider community and voluntary sector, must take into consideration the potential cost to the exchequer. Given these budgetary implications, and the referral of other similar claims to the WRC, the Department is following-up with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, prior to responding to the invite from the WRC.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
