Just 75 employers flag trouble getting staff to return to work

Just 75 employers have notified the Department of Social Protection officially that they are experiencing difficulties getting staff to return to work in recent weeks.

A department spokesman said last night it had received such reports from 40 employers in the last fortnight, on top of 35 in the two-week period running up to May 18th.

Some employers have reiterated warnings that enhanced welfare rates available through the pandemic unemployment payment (PUP) are providing a disincentive for some people to return to work.

The department said that since February 9th, some 35 per cent of PUP recipients have closed their claims.

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“As restrictions are currently being eased and further over the coming weeks and months, we expect people will be in a position to close their PUP claims as their employers reopen and they return to work,” it said.

“The experience to date is that people returned to work when restrictions were eased and it was safe to do so.”

The department is examining these cases individually and will take “appropriate steps” depending on the circumstances of each case.

Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys yesterday said numbers claiming the PUP has dropped to 309,000. She said it was down about 100,000 since the economy began to reopen partially.

The department received about 3,000 notifications over the past 14 months from employers about staff in receipt of the payment being reluctant to return to work. It said the vast majority of these cases did not involve misclaiming.

“Last year when the restrictions were eased, issues such as childcare and changes to terms of employment – including reduced hours – were raised as some of the factors which prevented a small proportion of PUP recipients from returning to work,” it said.

End of pandemic payment?

Meanwhile, the Government is planning a gradual tapering of the payment as part of its economic recovery plan. Under options being considered, the PUP could be closed to new entrants as soon as July.

The reduction in rates is likely to be staggered in three phases . The plan could mean those on the highest rate, €350 per week, having their entitlement cut to €300; while those in receipt of €300 per week would see it drop to €250. The lowest rate, €250 per week, would come into line with the jobseekers’ allowance of €203.

In the final phase, all recipients will be put on €203 per week.

The precise timing of the cuts was under discussion last night, with September being considered for the first cut. Business supports such as the Emergency Wage Subsidy Scheme are likely to be extended unchanged until late Septembber. Discussions were ongoing on how long the extension to this scheme would be, with the end of the third quarter or the end of the year being considered.

The recovery plan, said sources, would be based on helping people return to work and rebuilding sustainable enterprises. The Coalition is hopeful employment growth will drive a wider recovery, avoiding the need for tax increases.