Any advice???

joeob

I am 24 this september and finished college, I am not attending classes next year but will be registered to sit exams. I work part time (4hrs on sat, 4hrs on sunday and 3hrs on a midweek day). 11 to 12 hrs a week. As you can guess this is not a great amount of money to live on.

Alot of my time will be taken up with study as I have already been told that there are no additional hours available in work. A co-worker has told me that claims can be made if you work under a certain amount of hours. If this is so, does anyone know what this cap on working hours are??

I am an honest person and have worked all through my education since the age of 17 and I find myself in a situation which I never dreamt I would be in .

Are there any allowances in which I might be entitled to?

Any advice is much appreciated......

Thank you in advance.

tommy21

joeob wrote: »

I am 24 this september and finished college, I am not attending classes next year but will be registered to sit exams. I work part time (4hrs on sat, 4hrs on sunday and 3hrs on a midweek day). 11 to 12 hrs a week. As you can guess this is not a great amount of money to live on.

Alot of my time will be taken up with study as I have already been told that there are no additional hours available in work. A co-worker has told me that claims can be made if you work under a certain amount of hours. If this is so, does anyone know what this cap on working hours are??

I am an honest person and have worked all through my education since the age of 17 and I find myself in a situation which I never dreamt I would be in .

Are there any allowances in which I might be entitled to?

Any advice is much appreciated......

Thank you in advance.

It's worth taking a look at the FAQ sticky in main thread. The part that applies to you I think is:

"Third level examination only students (registered in an University/college to sit exams only, don't attend, e.g. repeat years/night study/Open University) are not disqualified for receipt of JA, but need to satisfy the availability/seeking work conditions."

To my knowledgle, you won't qualify for Job Seekers Benefit despite you having been working and possibly having enough PRSI contributions, as you have not actually lost any hours that you would normally have worked - that is you haven't fulfilled one of the requirements: "Have a substantial loss of employment and as a result be unemployed for at least 3 days in 6."

For Job Seekers Allowance take a look at http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/social-welfare/social-welfare-payments/unemployed-people/jobseekers-allowance for detailed info, but it seems that it is a little unclear whether you qualify:
"
To get Jobseeker’s Allowance usually you must be unemployed. However, there are circumstances in which you can work and get Jobseeker’s Allowance. For example:

* Your days at work are reduced
* You are laid off work temporarily
* You are self-employed but your level of business and income has reduced
* You can only get part-time or casual work.

You must meet all the other conditions for Jobseeker’s Allowance. For example, you must pass a means test and be unemployed for at least 3 days out of 6. You must also continue to look for full-time work."

Sunday does not count as a day of work for JSA, though they do take what you earn on the day into account for your weekly earnings. So depending on your means (e.g. what your parents earn, do you live at home etc) you may qualify for JSA. However if you are studying the whole time then clearly you are not available for work and this would be fraud to apply if that's the case (this is a qualifying criteria that you be available and actively looking for work).

Guesswork above by me so hopefully someone more experienced can correct any mistakes, as well as offering insight into other allowances you might be entitled to.