Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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124. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when it is intended to bring the pay levels of CE supervisors in line with other public sector employees with similar responsibilities and with equivalent educational criteria; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53969/22]

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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I value the role CE supervisors and assistant supervisors play on over 800 CE schemes in providing work experience and development opportunities to long term unemployed and essential services to local communities. As the Deputy is aware, CE supervisors and assistant supervisors are not employees of the Department and are not public servants. They are employees of individual schemes.

There is no link to grades or rates of pay between CE supervisors and public servants.

The Department, as the funder of CE schemes, received correspondence earlier this year from Fórsa and SIPTU seeking a pay increase for CE supervisors and assistant supervisors. The department has been advised in recent days that Fórsa and SIPTU have referred a pay claim to the conciliation service of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). The WRC has issued an invite to the Department to take part in a conciliation process.

Any increase in pay rates that would potentially increase the overall cost to the state of funding schemes, or state funded activities in the wider community and voluntary sector, must take into consideration the potential cost to the exchequer. Given these budgetary implications, and the referral of other similar claims to the WRC, the Department is following-up with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, prior to responding to the invite from the WRC.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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125. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the ex-gratia scheme for community employment supervisors where such supervisors were made redundant would apply. [59447/22]

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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129. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the progress to date in respect of ex-gratia payments for persons who served as community employment supervisors. [59444/22]

Joe O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 125 and 129 together.

CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors sought for several years through their union representatives, SIPTU and Forsa, the allocation of Exchequer funding to implement a 2008 Labour Court recommendation relating to the provision of a pension scheme for CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors who are employed by CE scheme sponsoring organisations.

A final settlement was agreed with unions representing CE supervisors and assistant supervisors at the end of 2021. This settlement resolves this long-standing issue through the payment of a once off ex-gratia payment to eligible CE supervisors and assistant supervisors. Some 2,500 people employed by CE schemes going back to 2008 will benefit; at an estimated total cost of over €24 million.

Generally, under the terms of this settlement, on reaching retirement age, eligible CE supervisors and assistant supervisors will receive a once off ex-gratia payment in respect of time employed by CE schemes since 2008. People who retired since 2008 and who have reached retirement age can now apply for this payment. It will not apply to persons, who received redundancy payments in respect of periods of time employed by CE schemes.

Over the past number of months, an administrative and ICT system to accept applications and process payments was put in place within the Department of Social Protection. The first group of ex-gratia applications have been received - these relate to persons who retired since 2008. In total, 624 completed applications have been received, with 480 of these processed. The balance are being worked on at present with a view to having them ready for payment as soon as possible.

Following Government approval earlier this month, legislative provisions to provide for these payments have been included in the Social Welfare Budget Bill, which will also facilitate the payment of processed applications. It is my intention that these payments will issue before the Christmas break. Recipients will receive notification when their payments are issuing.

I trust this clarifies the matters.