Covid payments drop 15%
90,000 fall-off in PUP claims as people return to work
THE number of people in receipt of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) has dropped by 90,000, or 15%, since it peaked in May, Government figures reveal.
Yesterday, Phase Two of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown went into effect. Retailers were allowed to reopen, and travel limitations were increased to within the county or 20km.
Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty said she expects the number of people returning to work to continue to climb.
‘Not everybody will return to work today or tomorrow and my department will continue to assist those who need income replacement supports. The PUP will continue until August 2020 and I have tasked my officials to start working on options for the scheme’s future beyond that,’ she said.
According to figures released by the Department of Social Protection yesterday, 515,700 people received a payment under the PUP valued at €180.5million.
This is a reduction of 27,400 claims from the same point last week, with 22,200 of those informing the department they are returning to work. The sector with the biggest week-on-week decrease in PUP claims was the construction sector, with 6,500 closing claims from today.
The sector with the most amount of claims is the accommodation and food services sector where there are 119,800 claims. However, in the past week 2,000 employees in this sector closed their claims.
From June 29, those who were earning €200 a week or above before the pandemic will continue to get €350 a week but those who were earning under €199.99 a week will get a payment of €203 a week.
In addition to the PUP, there are now over 59,000 employers who have registered with Revenue for the Temporary Covid-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS).
There are now 48,900 people who are medically certified for receipt
515,700 The number of people in receipt of a PUP claim
of the Covid-19 Enhanced Illness Benefit. That number is predominantly those who have been advised by GPs to self-isolate.
The above payments are in addition to the 225,600 people who were reported on the Live Register at the end of May.