Covid-19: Irish govt to pay Sports Journalists N60,000 per week salary
...Christmas bonus also on the card
The government of Ireland has announced further changes to its scheme to protect people whose employment has been impacted by COVID-19.
AIPS reports that the scheme, known as the pandemic unemployment payment (PUP), is open to anyone between 18 and 66 years of age and resident in Ireland who has lost his or her job as a result of the pandemic. The self-employed may also avail of its provisions.
In its annual budget statement, presented to parliament on October 13, the Irish government announced that the self-employed, including freelance journalists, may earn up to 120 euro per week (about N60;000) without losing access to PUP.
Ireland’s finance minister, Paschal Donohoe, also said that recipients of the pandemic unemployment payment will be paid what is known as the ‘Christmas bonus’ in 2020 if they have been accessing PUP for at least four months.
The ‘Christmas bonus’ is an extra week’s payment made in early December to people on social welfare, doubling the amount they receive from the state in the week it is paid.
When the PUP scheme was introduced in March, the rate was set at 350 euro per week for all claimants. However, in June two bands of payment were introduced. People who had earned less than 200 euro per week before the arrival of the coronavirus, for example students and part-time workers, had their payment capped at 203 euro per week, while anyone who previously earned more than 200 euro continued to receive 350 euro.
In September, the scheme was altered to include three bands: those who had been earning less than 200 euro per week continue to receive 203 euro; those who had been earning between 200 and 300 euro per week now receive 250 euro; and those who had been earning over 300 euro per week have had their payment capped at 300 euro per week.
At that time the government also announced that PUP would remain open to new applicants until the end of 2020.
A further reduction in the rates is expected in February 2021, with the scheme due to be discontinued in April 2021.
