Arising from the dissolution of the National Rehabilitation Board and the mainstreaming of employment and training supports within FÁS, new arrangements were implemented around mid-2001 for the payment of training allowances for people with disabilities who are in vocational training. The main effect of these new arrangements is to ensure that all people with disabilities participating in vocational training receive a proper training allowance, as recommended by the Commission on the Status of People with Disabilities. This involved the discontinuance of the former arrangements whereby disability allowance had been used by training agencies, including the NTDI, as a form of training allowance. Such trainees are now entitled to the standard FÁS training allowance in substitution for their existing social welfare payments. They are also entitled to a weekly 31.74 training bonus from FÁS and to retain entitlement to all secondary benefits. On completion of the training, or where they are not in a position to finish the training, entitlement to disability allowance is automatically restored.
Where, following completion of a FÁS training course, or otherwise, people in receipt of disability allowance engage in rehabilitative employment or self-employment, the first 95.23 of their earnings – increasing to 120 from April 2002 – is disregarded for means test purposes. A recipient of disability allowance who wishes to engage in employment in the open labour market can avail of the back to work allowance. Under this scheme, participants can retain their social welfare payments on a sliding scale over three years – four years if they are self-employed – together with their earnings from employment or self-employment. As will be seen, therefore, a range of adaptations have been made to the disability allowance scheme in recent years so as to encourage claimants to participate in training programmes which are designed to increase their employability and to further encourage them to engage in employment opportunities where this is appropriate.
FÁS training allowances are treated differently according to the particular nature of the social welfare scheme. For example, as both disability benefit and invalidity pension are contributory social insurance payments, they are, in general, not affected by any other income that the person may have, such as a FÁS training allowance. Disability allowance, on the other hand, is a means-tested payment and any other income which the person may have, for example, a FÁS training allowance, is in general assessed as means. Nevertheless, it is recognised that differences in the operation of the training and employment supports which apply to recipients of the various disability-related payments can be the cause of some confusion. This is one of a range of issues which are currently being examined as part of the expenditure review of the illness and disability payment schemes, which is being carried out by the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs. It is expected that this review will be completed by mid-2002. It is estimated that approximately 1,100 disability allowance recipients, 330 invalidity pensioners and 200 recipients of disability benefit are participating in FÁS training courses.
