Results 31,901-31,920 of 34,778 for speaker:Seán Fleming
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Are they for different types of searches and different types of substances?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Showing their teeth.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Yesterday, the committee met teachers and representatives of the Department of Education and Skills. Teachers receive an allowance for yard duty supervision but the allowance is pensionable. It is additional work, almost akin to overtime, and amounts to 33 hours per year. The additional hours for the Irish Prison Service staff are very close to core pay but it is not pensionable. It is...
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: The new recruits we are discussing are on a reduced rate in terms of the annual hours premium rate.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: That is exactly what I am asking about. We are talking about allowances. This is a clear case in which a reduction in pay rates will translate into a reduction in what some call an allowance, although I would describe it as core pay.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: The Irish Prison Service is unusual in that allowances are specifically related to the hourly rate. Most other allowances we have discussed are fixed amounts and do not reduce if the hourly rate reduces. There will be a natural reduction in the allowances payable when the service starts to recruits again. I have a figure for the starting point as €22,124. Is that correct?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: What figure does a person start at? When we asked the question about the Army, there was shock at how low pay rates were for those entering the Army. I estimate that if the €22,124 figure for the recruit prison officer grade is correct, the starting point is €425 per week which is a fraction above social welfare rates and the minimum wage. I want to disabuse some people of...
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: The figure for the prison officer grade starts at €31,329, which is €600 per week, although I know there are allowances on top of this. The basic rate is not as high as some may think. People are confused about annualised and additional hours. Are they the same?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Some talk about annualised hours.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: That system was introduced in 2005. As I represent Portlaoise, I am familiar with the negotiations held. Mr. Clinton mentioned the issue of social partnership which was included in the agreement which did not allow for salary increases. What was the title of the agreement?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: The Croke Park deal is between the Government as an employer and the public sector trade unions as employees. It is not about social partnership but a bilateral pay agreement for public servants. With regard to the social partnership agreement, who signed up to it? It would have included the Government, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions for public sector workers, as well as the unions in...
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Were the social pillar organisations involved at that stage? This deal was done because everybody signed up to an arrangement whereby there would be no pay increases. Pay increases in the Irish Prison Service could only be given by calling them allowances.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Who initiated it? Was it the then Minister? Did the officers volunteer to have the annualised system? Did it come about as a result of the reviews carried out?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: From the Department.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: What grades in the public service would have been similar?
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: The social partnership deal was signed up to by almost everybody in the country in both the public and private sectors. Everybody was involved, including farmers, IBEC and the social pillars. A deal on pay was specifically not allowed at the time. Therefore, one way of ensuring there would be no knock-on effect was to call it an allowance. The country signed up to the process of calling...
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: Mr. Purcell might be surprised at me asking this question as everybody thinks the sole purpose of the committee is to cut costs. We are here to ensure value for money and fair play. The additional hours payments are a fundamental part of core pay. Having examined the chart detailing additional hours, it seems it is almost the only category that is not pensionable. Why is this? Everybody...
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: That accounts for a figure of approximately €10 million.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: I cannot see much of a distinction between the two.
- Public Accounts Committee: Department of Justice and Equality - Review of Allowances (25 Oct 2012)
Seán Fleming: It is now built into the basic structure and a new recruit will follow that process.