Written Answers. - Social Welfare Benefits.
John Bruton
Ceist:
197
Mr. J. Bruton
asked the
Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs
if he will grant credited contributions or recognition to women who worked in the home to enable them, when they become available for work outside the home, to qualify for the same benefits, schemes and training opportunities open to other women who are available for work and do not have it.
[16276/99]
As the Deputy is aware, access to many education, training and employment programmes is available to both men and women who are in receipt of unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance for a specified period or who are signing-on for credited contributions. There are also a number of programmes available to men and women alike for which there is no live register attachment and female participation rates in those courses has increased significantly in recent years.
In accordance with a commitment given in Partnership 2000, a working group has been established to review the question of access by women to labour market opportunities with a view to increasing gender equity and improving job opportunities. This group is chaired by my Department and includes representatives from the National Women's Council of Ireland, the Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, the Irish Farmers' Association, the Congress Centres for the Unemployed, FÁS, the Employment Equality Agency, Aontas and relevant Government Departments. It is expected that the report of the group will be completed later this summer and the Government will then consider what action needs to be taken on foot of the recommendations in this report.
The Government also recognises that women who leave the workforce to undertake family responsibilities in the home face difficulties in maintaining their social insurance record and has given a commitment under An Action Programme for the Millennium "to provide the mechanism to allow women, who take time out for family reasons, to continue contributions for pension purposes".
However, certain measures have already been introduced to address this problem. Special arrangements are already in place to help people who work in the home to qualify for an old age contributory pension. From 6 April 1994 years spent out of the workforce caring either for children up to the age of six, increased to age 12 from 6 April 1995, or incapacitated people may be disregarded in calculating the person's yearly average number of contributions for old age contributory pension purposes. A maximum of 20 years may be disregarded in this way.
Provision is also made for the award of credited contributions in the year in which a person commences or ceases to be a homemaker. In addition, earnings of up to £30 per week where a person is engaged in part-time employment outside the home are also permitted. It is estimated that up to 250,000 people could ultimately benefit under the above arrangements.
I would also point out that in November 1997 I introduced newpro rata pensions so that people who pay social insurance for a reasonable period of time will qualify for an old age contributory pension. A yearly average of between 15 and 19 contributions gives a pension of 75 per cent of the maximum rate, while an average of between ten and 14 gives a pension of 50 per cent. To qualify a person also needs to have a minimum of 260 paid contributions. This measure is of benefit to many women who have gaps in their PRSI records due to working in the home looking after a child, or caring full time for an elderly or incapacitated person.
In line with its stated commitment, the Government accepts that more work needs to be done in this area. My Department is now considering the issue on a three-fold basis. First, the issue is being examined in the context of the general review of the qualifying conditions for the old age, contributory, and retirement pensions which, it is hoped, will be completed shortly. Second, an in-depth examination of the provisions of the homemakers scheme will also be undertaken by the Department, later this year. This examination will consider the present disregard arrangements and alternatives such as the award of credited contributions, the question of retrospection, and the cost of any change to the present arrangements.
Finally, the question of pension provision, both social welfare and occupational, is being considered by the Department in the context of the Pensions Board report on the national pensions policy initiative, NPPI. In their report – Securing Retirement Income – the Pensions Board recommended that occupational pension coverage targets also include specific targets for increased coverage of women in both employed and self-employed areas.
The board considered that the proposed introduction of personal retirement savings accounts, PRSAs, would greatly facilitate the position of women with broken employment records due to child care and other responsibilities. The working group, chaired by my Department, which was set up to examine issues relating to the introduction of PRSAs, is making good progress. The outcome of the group's deliberations will be reflected in the comprehensive Pensions Bill which I hope to publish early in 2000.
