asked the Minister for Labour the number of redundancies notified during the first 26 weeks of 1972 compared with the corresponding periods of the preceding three years.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Redundancy Statistics.
35.
The number of redundancies notified under the Redundancy Payments Acts to my Department during the first 26 weeks of 1972 was 5,586. The numbers of redundancies notified during the same periods in 1969, 1970 and 1971 were, respectively, 2,056, 1,892 and 3,778.
The figures for the years 1969, 1970 and 1971 are not directly comparable with the figures for 1972 because of the reduction in the qualifying period for redundancy payments from four to two years under the Redundancy Payments Act, 1971, which became effective as from 1st September, 1971, and the raising of the limit for compulsory insurance from £1,200 to £1,600 per annum with effect from 3rd May, 1971.