Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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152. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will consider an alleviation to the calculation of the average salary for the purpose of calculating severance packages to allow for a normal salary to be averaged as opposed to the actual reduced earnings which are currently being used and have been significantly lower for the past 19 months for some workers due to the Covid-19 pandemic; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51878/21]

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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In order to qualify for a statutory redundancy payment, an employee must have 104 weeks continuous employment, be an employed contributor in employment which was insurable for all benefits under the Social Welfare Acts and be over the age of 16.  An eligible employee is entitled to two weeks statutory redundancy payment for every year of service, plus a bonus week.  The redundancy lump sum calculation is based on the worker’s length of reckonable service and weekly remuneration, which is subject to a ceiling of €600 per week.

There is no legislative provision relating to the weekly remuneration to be used when an employee is on short-time work or reduced hours or salary.  However, the general guidance has been that if an employer has placed an employee on short-time work or reduced hours for certain periods of time, the full-time salary should be used for the calculation of statutory redundancy. An employee can refer a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission in the event of a dispute regarding the amount of the statutory redundancy lump sum.

Any arrangement or agreement relating to the calculation of a redundancy payment which is over and above the statutory redundancy entitlement is a voluntary matter between employers and employees and their union representatives. The State has no role in this regard.