Responding to the decision taken by Cabinet on how reckonable service will be treated when the suspension of certain provisions of Section 12A of the Redundancy Act expires at the end of this month, Irish Congress of Trade Unions general secretary, Patricia King said:
“Congress has consistently advocated Government that workers, temporarily laid off as a result of the public health restrictions, should not be further financially penalised and that the period spent on PUP should be included in the calculation of any redundancy lump sum payment. Government’s announcement today confirms they have heard and agree with us.
“Without these special provisions, tens of thousands of workers, having been laid off due to the pandemic and their redundancy rights being suspended, would lose out on almost 19-months of redundancy pay, where such payments arise.
“At present, the legislation does not provide for the inclusion of periods of lay-off within the final three years of service before redundancy as allowable for the purposes of calculation of the redundancy lump sum payment. It provides the right to claim redundancy after a four-week period, having been intended to avoid workers being left in limbo. It had never been envisaged that they could be left in this extraordinary position for almost two years.
“Now that a solution to this legally complex matter has been found and agreed by Cabinet, Congress urges all members of the Oireachtas to work with trade unions and Government in getting the necessary legislation enacted without delay so that these workers can move on and seek to new employment opportunities.”
