Vol. 431 No. 2
79 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Social Welfare his views on whether part-time firemen should not have to sign-off the unemployment register unless a fire call exceeds three hours, thereby ensuring that they do not lose out on their weekly payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Applicants for unemployment payments are required to prove that they are available for employment. Unemployment is proved by signing the unemployed register and the person making a declaration to the effect that they were unemployed and available for work in respect of any day for which a payment is being claimed.
Part-time firemen are not exempt from this requirement but, having regard to the public service nature of their role with the fire service, a code of practice emerged some years ago whereby attendance at fire drills and the occasional attendance at fires would not be seen as precluding availability for employment. This practice reflected the concessions afforded by employers to employees who were part-time members of the fire service.
A number of part-time firemen are virtually full-time employees with annual earnings in many cases in excess of £10,000 and in some instances as high as £18,000. The current practice whereby firemen have such earnings and claim full unemployment payments is inequitable compared with the position of other unemployed people. The issue is currently being examined in the context of a review of the position of part-time firemen.
