Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise again the question of Covid payments for front-line workers. We recently saw a protest by hospital cleaners, who were contract cleaners and who are being refused the €1,000 Covid payment, despite the fact that they work daily on the front line. Today it has come to my attention that section 39 workers who are personal care workers for people with disabilities have been refused the payment, and refused on appeal. I understand that this was a decision made by the Government because the workers do not fall into the criteria of any particular framework.

If you were not in this House and you were just out there doing your work and keeping your head down, you would think the Government did a great thing by giving all front-line workers a €1,000 general payment but there are cohorts being excluded even though they worked day in, day out on the front line. The particular cohort I want to ask the Taoiseach about, who have just been told about the loss of their appeal, are section 39 workers looking after people with severe disabilities day in, day out. They have been refused a mere €1,000 for working during Covid. The Government boasts about having a €6 billion surplus so how does it square that circle?

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