Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

129. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the measures he will introduce to protect persons in low-pay, low-hour work from income volatility, including volatility associated with existing social protection payments, with particular regard for a person (details supplied). [52005/26]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

All recipients of jobseeker’s payment from my Department must declare any days worked, or any holiday entitlement days for which they receive payment. As part-time employment may vary considerably from week to week, a declaration of employment and unemployment is required each week to ensure that the person is receiving the correct payment.

The rules of Jobseeker's Allowance require that you must be unemployed for at least four days out of every seven to qualify for payment. As a result, if you work more than three days in a week, you won’t qualify for payment for that week under that scheme.

The Programme for Government sets out a commitment to consider a working age payment.

Any new working age payment should ensure individuals always see an increase in income when they take up work or take on additional hours. Accordingly, one possibility is that a working age payment could remove the aforementioned "four in seven" rule. A new working age payment could also allow an individual to change their working pattern or take on additional hours without a sudden loss in payment. Instead, their payment would adapt by gradually reducing through a taper.

My Department has recently conducted a public consultation on a proposed model for a new working age payment.

My officials will review and analyse all submissions received through the consultation process. These are complex reforms, and it will take time to consider the input from the consultation process, and to progress more detailed design. Proposals will be brought to Government in due course.