Social Welfare Act, 1996
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PART VI Unemployment Assistance | ||
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Unemployment assistance. |
22.—(1) Section 120 (as amended by section 18 of the Act of 1995) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by— | |
(a) the substitution for subsections (1), (2) and (3) of the following subsections: | ||
“(1) Subject to this Act, a person shall be entitled to unemployment assistance in respect of any week of unemployment if— | ||
(a) the person has attained the age of 18 years and has not attained pensionable age, | ||
(b) the person proves unemployment in the prescribed manner, and | ||
(c) the person's weekly means, subject to subsection (2) (d), do not exceed the amount of unemployment assistance (including any increases thereof) that would be payable to the person under this Chapter if that person had no means. | ||
(2) (a) A person shall not be entitled to unemployment assistance in respect of the first 3 days of unemployment in any continuous period of unemployment. | ||
(b) For the purpose of this section, any period prior to the relevant date of application for unemployment assistance shall not be reckoned as, or as part of, a continuous period of unemployment. | ||
(c) Any period during which a person is disqualified for receiving unemployment assistance shall not be reckoned in the computation of any continuous period of unemployment of such person. | ||
(d) Where the spouse of a claimant for unemployment assistance is not the claimant's adult dependant, the means of the claimant shall be taken to be one-half the means. | ||
(3) In this Chapter, any 3 days of unemployment, whether consecutive or not, within a period of 6 consecutive days shall be treated as a week of unemployment and any 2 such weeks not separated by more than 52 weeks shall be treated as one continuous period of unemployment, and references in this Chapter to being continuously unemployed or continuous unemployment shall be construed accordingly. | ||
(3A) For the purposes of this Chapter, a day shall not be treated in relation to any person as a day of unemployment unless on that day, the person— | ||
(a) is capable of work, | ||
(b) is, or by reason of the person's participation in an activity prescribed for the purposes of this subsection and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed, is deemed to be, or is exempted from being required to be, available for employment, and | ||
(c) is genuinely seeking, but is unable to obtain, suitable employment having regard to the person's age, physique, education, normal occupation, place of residence and family circumstances.”, | ||
and | ||
(b) the deletion of subsection (8). | ||
(2) Paragraph (a) (inserted by section 16 of the Act of 1995) of section 121 (1) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by— | ||
(a) the substitution in subparagraph (i) for “for not less than 390 days, or” of “in respect of not less than 390 days of unemployment, or”, and | ||
(b) the substitution for subparagraph (ii) of the following subparagraph: | ||
“(ii) immediately before the week of unemployment for which unemployment assistance is claimed, was in receipt of— | ||
(A) lone parent's allowance, but has ceased to be entitled to such allowance by virtue of no longer being regarded as a lone parent within the meaning of section 157(1), or | ||
(B) carer's allowance, but has ceased to be entitled to such allowance by virtue of no longer being regarded as a carer within the meaning of section 163(1),”. | ||
(3) The Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion after section 121 of the following section: | ||
“121A.—Regulations may entitle a person to unemployment assistance in respect of a day of unemployment and the amount of unemployment assistance so payable for any such day shall be one-sixth of the appropriate weekly rate.”. | ||
(4) Section 46 (as amended by section 17 of the Act of 1995) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (6) of the following subsection: | ||
“(6) For the purpose of this section, where a person receives unemployment assistance in respect of any week of unemployment, within the meaning of section 120(3), which includes any day in respect of which that person is entitled to unemployment benefit, any day of unemployment in the said week shall be treated as though it were a day in respect of which unemployment benefit was paid.”. | ||
(5) Section 122 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the deletion of subsections (2) and (3). | ||
(6) Section 2(1) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution in the definition of a “day of unemployment” for “120(6)” of “120(3A) or 120(6)”. | ||
(7) Section 127 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (1) of the following subsections: | ||
“(1) Subject to this Act, pre-retirement allowance shall be payable in respect of any period of retirement to a person— | ||
(a) who has attained the age specified by regulations but has not attained pensionable age, | ||
(b) whose weekly means, subject to subsection (2), do not exceed the amount of pre-retirement allowance (including any increases thereof) that would be payable to the person under this Chapter if that person had no means, and | ||
(c) who has been in receipt of unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance in respect of not less than 390 days of unemployment in any continuous period of unemployment in the immediately preceding period as construed in accordance with section 120(3). | ||
(1A) In this Chapter— | ||
‘weekly means’ shall be the yearly means divided by 52; | ||
means shall be calculated in accordance with the Rules contained in Part I of the Third Schedule.”. | ||
(8) Section 127(2) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the deletion of “calculated in accordance with the Rules contained in Part I of the Third Schedule”. | ||
(9) Section 3(12) (as amended by section 15 of this Act) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion after— | ||
(a) “99(3),” of “120(2)(d),” and | ||
(b) “124(1),” of “127(2),”. | ||
(10) Section 203A(1) of the Principal Act (inserted by section 7 of this Act) is hereby amended by the substitution in paragraph (a) for “for not less than 312 days” of “in respect of not less than 312 days of unemployment”. | ||
(11) Rule 1 (as amended by section 23 of this Act) of Part I of the Third Schedule is hereby amended by— | ||
(a) the substitution in paragraph (2)(m) for “such amount as may be prescribed of” of “subject to paragraph (7),”, | ||
(b) the deletion in paragraph (6) of “in respect of a day of unemployment which occurs”, and | ||
(c) the insertion after paragraph (6) (inserted by section 11 of the No. 2 Act of 1995) of the following paragraph: | ||
“(7) In the case of a person engaged in employment under a contract of service, the value, ascertained in the prescribed manner of any moneys derived from the said employment and the value so calculated shall be deemed to constitute the weekly means of that person from such employment for the purposes of Chapter 2 of Part III.”. | ||
(12) In the case of a person who is in receipt of unemployment assistance on the commencement of this section, the provisions of this section shall not have the effect of reducing the rate of unemployment assistance payable below that payable on the said date. | ||
(13) This section shall come into operation on such day as the Minister may appoint by order. |