Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981

Pay-related benefit (additional benefit for certain recipients of maternity allowance).

11.—(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for section 75 of the following section:

“75. (1) Notwithstanding any other provision in this Chapter, additional benefit (by way of pay-related benefit) shall be paid to a woman entitled to maternity allowance under paragraph (a) of section 24 (2) (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981) to provide that the weekly aggregate of the maternity allowance, pay-related benefit (if any) otherwise payable under the other provisions of this Chapter and such additional benefit will be an amount equal to—

(a) 80% of her reckonable weekly earnings in the income tax year prescribed for the purpose of this section, or

(b) 80% of such amount as may be prescribed as the average reckonable weekly earnings of women in that year,

whichever is the greater.

(2) The percentage specified in subsection (1) may be varied by regulations having regard to such matters as—

(a) movements in the annual average earnings of women, and

(b) the imposition or variation of statutory deductions from or charges on earnings.”.

(2) Section 3 (4) (a) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of “75 (2),” after “73,”.