Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 May 2017
273. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Finance the number of NAMA staff who have taken voluntary redundancies in each of the years from 2010 to 2016 and to date in 2017, in tabular form; the cost associated with same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20057/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs set out in my Department's Section 227 Review of NAMA in July 2014, the ability of NAMA to obtain the best achievable financial return for the State is heavily dependent on its retention of expertise. That view has been strongly endorsed by the NAMA Board. Given that, I agreed with the NAMA Board in the context of NAMA's accelerated senior debt redemption target and its ancillary residential and commercial development funding activities, that a redundancy programme reflecting public sector norms and also comprising a retention payment element would be introduced to enable NAMA to retain key staff.
Retention payments are only made where staff are departing the organisation under the Agency's redundancy programme. The retention payment for individual staff is dependent on NAMA achieving its targets and on satisfactory individual performance ratings. Redundancy dates are not "voluntary" in the ordinary sense as such dates are pre-agreed with staff as part of NAMA's wind down strategy. Payment will only be made if the staff member was retained and did not leave the organisation until the pre-agreed date.
I am advised by NAMA that since the redundancy and retention scheme was approved by the NAMA Board in late 2015, a total of 91 members of staff assigned to NAMA have been approved for the scheme.
As set out in previous responses to the Dáil, most recently Dáil Question 131 of 31 January 2017, the redundancy element is in keeping with established public sector norms; that is, two weeks statutory pay per year of service, capped at €600 per week, plus three additional weeks of base salary per year of service with an overall cap of two years base salary.
NAMA has also advised that the retention portion of the scheme is being implemented in line with the stipulated parameters, which I agreed with the NAMA Chairman in March 2015, regarding the quantum of any payment under the scheme, the timing of any such payment and employee eligibility under the scheme. The underlying objective of the scheme is to help safeguard NAMA’s performance in line with an orderly wind-down plan.
|
Year |
Number of employees who exited |
Cost |
|
2010 |
0 |
- |
|
2011 |
0 |
- |
|
2012 |
0 |
- |
|
2013 |
0 |
- |
|
2014 |
0 |
- |
|
2015 |
0 |
- |
|
2016 |
50 |
€3.6 million |
|
2017 |
41* |
€3.9 million* |
*the 2017 programme has not yet been finalised as employees continue to exit throughout 2017. To date, 6 employees have left. The above cost is an accrual amount only and will be reflected in the 2016 financial statements.
