Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 117: To ask the Minister for Social Protection her views regarding the impact on employment of the proposal to force employers to pay the first four weeks of illness benefit for an employee; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36901/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The question of introducing a scheme of statutory sick pay is one of a range of options being examined with a view to meeting the commitments which this country has entered into with the EU/IMF/ECB to achieve substantial reductions in current spending.

I should say, however, that statutory sick pay schemes are the norm amongst most EU member states. The extent to which employers are liable varies significantly – for example two years in the Netherlands, twenty eight weeks in the UK and 9 days in Finland. The specific manner in which such schemes operate – in terms of coverage, payment rates, compensation for certain employers and so on also vary considerably. A preliminary analysis based on estimates of absenteeism indicates that if a sick pay scheme with a duration of four weeks were to be introduced, it would add between €1-2 per employee per week to the costs of employment.

Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 118: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the amount of money which would be raised in a full year if all income including rents and dividends were subject to PRSI. [36899/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Workers are liable to pay PRSI on their earnings from employment. If an employee has income from self-employment this income is also liable to PRSI as is any other unearned income such as rental income or dividends. However, if an employee has unearned income only, there is no PRSI charge on the unearned income. It is not possible in the time available for reply to do detailed calculations on the amount of money that would be raised in a full year if all income including rents and dividends were subject to PRSI.