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Thousands of people currently receiving pandemic unemployment pay will see their entitlement drop by as much as € 100 per week from today.
Until now, the maximum PUP pay rate for those laid off due to the Covid-19 crisis was € 350 per week, which applied to those who earned more than € 200 per week before the pandemic.
The lowest rate of € 203 was paid to those whose pre-pandemic income was less than € 200.
However, starting today, the maximum rate will drop to € 300 for workers who previously earned more than € 300 a week.
A new fee of € 250 will be applied to those whose pre-Covid earnings were between € 200 and € 300 per week.
The lower rate of € 203 for those earning less than € 200 remains unchanged.
The reduced entitlements will be reflected in welfare payments due this Tuesday.
PUP fees will be reduced further in February and the plan will expire on March 31, 2021, after which applicants will enjoy the normal benefits of job applicants.
Originally, it was supposed to be closed to new entrants starting today, but that deadline has been extended until the end of December.
As of last Monday, 209,941 people were claiming the PUP, down from the 598,000 peak in early May.
However, as the rise of the coronavirus continues, it remains to be seen whether that number will rise again if extensive health restrictions are re-imposed.
Solidarity-People Before Earnings TD Richard Boyd Barrett has said that reducing pay is terribly unfair to people who cannot go to work due to public health restrictions.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne show, she said a reduced income subsidy should be introduced to support workers.
Boyd Barrett has said that cutting payments “dangerously threatens the principle that we are all together” by financially punishing people who work in certain industries “who have done nothing wrong” and cannot work or earn a living.
He said putting in place an income subsidy would allow taxi drivers, musicians and others to work where they can, but with their income subsidized.
He said this would give them a different option to working sporadically and receiving no pay or not working at all and receiving reduced pay.
He said that certain sectors have no prospects for recovery and therefore there is no justification for cutting their payments.
However, Fine Gael TD Jennifer Carroll MacNeill told the show that the changes to the PUP reflect what people earned before Covid-19 and this was being done in solidarity with workers.
He said more nuanced payments are needed to keep the subsidy going longer.
Ms. Carroll MacNeill said the people who get paid can do irregular work and keep their PUP.
He said the scheme has been extended until next April and rates are expected to change again in February.
The Fine Gael TD said that payments cannot go on forever and while reducing and graduating payments, the government is also introducing stimulus measures for sectors such as taxi drivers and the entertainment industry.
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