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Ireland's political and cultural magazine
2 8 Nov/Dec 2016
‘B
UILDING A JUST SOCIETY’ was the title for the
Irish National Organisation of the Unem-
ployed (INOU) Pre-Budget Submission. This
title reflected our concern that without a strong com-
mitment to addressing social exclusion and economic
inequalities, many people will be left to observe, rather
than participate in, Ireland’s economic recovery.
The recent Budget provided a key chance for
Government to give some practical
expression to this commitment.
We particularly wanted Budget
2017 to start the process of restor-
ing working-age social-welfare
rates to 2009 levels, and to end
the age segregation introduced
into the Jobseekers Allowance
payment during the economic
crisis. It is welcome that, for most
social protection payments, the
claimant’s rate will be increased by
€5 per week. However, this increase
should start from January next year, as
would have been the experience when such
changes were announced in the past. This is the first
increase to working-age payments since Budget 2009.
However, the new rate of €193 will still be €11.30 below
the maximum working-age payment made in 2009 of
€204.30.
The supplementary Budget of 2009 was the budget
that introduced a reduced Jobseekers Allowance rate
for young people of €100. This was initially for those
aged 18 and 19 years. It was extended out in subse-
quent budgets until it applied to people aged 18-24,
while people aged 25 could only receive a maximum
payment of €144.
Jobseekers Allowance (JA) is a means-
tested payment, and the €100 is the
maximum payment available for
people aged between 18 and 24
years of age. For someone to
receive the full amount they
must be a young person who
personally, and whose family,
has few other means. It is dis-
appointing that nothing was
done in this Budget to address
this inequality. As a consequence,
young Jobseekers are only to receive
a proportion of the €5 increase on
other payments. This amounts to €2.70 for
young people aged 18-24 and €3.80 for people
aged 25.
On a positive note, young people will receive the full
JA rate if they participate in an education and training
programme. In acknowledgement of their restricted
income, young people who are in receipt of Rent
Small increases
to Unemployment
Benefits
Modest progress in the Budget isn’t
enough for the least well-off
by Brid O’Brien
The new rate of €193
will still be €11.30
below the maximum
working-age payment
made in 2009; and
€102.70 for
18-24s
POLITICS
Nov/Dec 2016 2 9
Wanted: social-welfare dignity
Supplement payment will make a smaller contribution
to their rent.
The big challenge on housing, for anyone in receipt
of Rent Supplement, continues to be finding and main
-
taining accommodation that is within the agreed limits.
The INOU was not alone in calling for the significant
scaling-up of social housing provision to address the
level of demand and need. A range of measures was
announced in Budget 2017, but they are still a long way
off what is required to address the current dire
situation.
The full restoration of the Christmas Bonus and a
change in eligibility criteria was another INOU demand.
An 85% restoration was announced and this is a move
in the right direction. However, 100% restoration would
have been particularly welcome at a time of year where
inequalites are most manifest. It was disappointing
that the eligibility criteria for this were not changed.
Currently, unemployed persons must be in receipt of a
Jobseekers payment for 15 months before they can
receive this additional payment. As unemployed people
are deemed to be long-term unemployed at 12 months,
these should have been the new qualifying criteria.
Among the earliest austerity measures was a cut in
the duration an unemployed person could be on the
social insurance unemployment payment, ‘Jobseekers
Benefit’. As a consequence of this cut, people who did
not make the transition from this payment to the
means-tested payment, ‘Jobseekers Allowance’ have
found themselves without access to supports and ser-
vices. Many people have not made the transition
because of their family circumstances. Their partner,
for example, may be working, not necessarily in a well-
paid job, and so the family find themselves down one
key income.
One of the motions to the INOU’s Annual Delegate
Conference earlier this year called on the Government
to “restore the duration of Jobseekers Benefit to 12
months and 9 months from the current levels of 9 and
6 months for people who have, respectively, at least or
less than 260 paid contributions since starting insur
-
able employment”. This change is needed to alleviate
the difficulties facing these unemployed people and
their families, and to facilitate their participation in
education, training and employment programmes.
The INOU will continue to work on these issues, as
part of our commitment to an acceptable standard of
living for unemployed people and their dependents.
The next step in this work is addressing the forthcom-
ing Social Welfare Bill.
Brid O’Brien is Head of Policy and Media with the Irish
National Organisation of the Unemployed
