Referendum pay rates

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121942340#Comment_121942340

Nice one mate.

If you don't mind me asking,

1. Which County are you based in?

2. Who do you Bank with?

3. Did you receive an email with the Payslip on the same day?

The reason I ask is because as someone already said, the County you're in might make a difference in when you're paid

As would who you Bank with. Sometimes it may take a few days longer for certain Banks.

And lastly, regarding the Payslip. They usually send it with a breakdown of Tax/USC paid. And if you are a Student or currently not working, you can claim back the Tax at the start of next year. Just go onto the MyGov.org or what ever its called & go to the Revenue section.

If you haven't exceeded your annual Tax threshold then you just click for an Audit & they'll send you back the Tax you paid directly into your Bank Account within a few weeks.

They are amazingly fast at returning it nowadays actually.

But be warned. If you claim Social Welfare, then the Revenue will notify the Social that you are working. And they do it pretty sharpish, like within a couple of weeks.

You can just tell the Social that your name is on the list, but you only find out if you're working on the week of the Election.

They will make you pay back that entire weeks money, but you can pay it back for as little as 15% per week if need be. It's the paperwork that's the hassle.

It says you are an ongoing employee of the Returning Office, or that you worked a full week as opposed to one day. So you have to go to their head office & get a letter saying you were only working one day & are not in full-time employment. The Social give you 21 days in total to sort it out. But tbh it's a pain in the arse getting it done.

But when it comes to claiming the Tax back then there's no need to mention it. Revenue don't inform them of that.

I was eager to get paid myself. I've been doing it for about a decade. I was a Poll Clerk for years. Then promoted to Presiding Officer, which tbh isn't worth the stress for the extra few quid.

But this year I was a Supervisor, & changed to a completely different Constituency only a few days before Election Day.

So I'm worried that they won't pay the full amount correctly in one payment.

I'd taken a few months off work coz I was doing a Course & had Exams coming up. Plus I had a few other things going on. So I was relying on Social Welfare at the time.

So if they don't pay it all at once, it will show up as two separate payments, meaning it could end up costing me two weeks of Social Welfare. And also look like I'm working under the table.

But tbh I've never hidden the fact I work the Elections. After a decade or so it's on their Records that I work every Election & do the required paperwork afterwards. So I could do without the hassle of a payment been messed up.

In Dublin they are usually pretty quick at paying. Think the first one I worked they didn't pay for months.

But since then it's been pretty consistent that they pay within a couple of weeks.

Same with the Tax Rebate. It's usually in your account within a week or two.

So the fact that I'm relying on the cash this time, & also in fear there may be a clerical error, is an overall head melter.

Anyway, if you get a chance then let us know.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers mate

Allinall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121943584#Comment_121943584

So gross I presume we’ll over minimum wage?

upinthesky

I am sure all poll clerks are on the same rate so 245 net 408 gross?

Not too bad of pay only down side for me was not getting any breaks during the day and having to eat at the desk, and having to use a day’s holiday, not sure if i would do it again, we will see..

payment still not in my account yet..

billyhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121944532#Comment_121944532

It depends on your work situation. I only came out with just under 200 net.

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121944532#Comment_121944532

It goes up around €10-20 quid each Election. Think it was up to €389 Gross for the last one. So should be around €400 mark.

But as I said earlier, depending on your work situation you can claim the Tax back.

Also just got an email from the Dublin Office that says payment will be made on the 4th April. So at least that saves checking my account every day.

Could've done with it before the long weekend tbh. But at least we have a date now.

dulpit

I assume the pay for the upcoming elections in June will be higher? 3 sets of voting papers, and apparently there's a bit more money when it's a European election?

digidy

Don't think it works like that. Not sure exactly how the increase works tbh.

It was €369 for a few Elections before going up to about €389.

Think it's been increased within the same year before as well.

I will say it's never less than the previous amount, so it doesn't go down, & you can never determine the exact payday in advance.

And always take the Tax into account. At the bottom of the Payslips it says something about deducting 40% if you work full-time. So chances are unless you're on the higher Tax bracket then you'll be entitled to the Tax back.

So Students, people working part-time, or anyone on Social Welfare will get most, if not all the Tax back.

I did the South Dublin By-Election during COVID, so nobody was working. It worked out I paid less than €2 in Tax. It was great.

The Presiding Officer is a few quid more. But it's a lot of stress at the at the end for not much more cash.

If it's your first time then you always have older people telling you you're doing the final count wrong. And they really get into your head & cause stress.

But they never read the Rule Book for changes. So most of the time it's actually them just stuck in their ways, working on Rules for 20 years ago.

Most are just being helpful. But a lot of ex-teachers, Retirees, etc will argue black is white rather than admit they're wrong. So just make sure you actually check the rulebook yourself & listen in the Training Class.

Btw you get paid for going to the Training. Think it's about €25 per hour & lasts between 1-2 hours

There was an article about some guy on the Northside that was a recent Irish Citizen, had an Irish Passport, & his name was on the list. But a Clerk wouldn't let him vote because "he didn't look Irish". It eventually got sorted, but it caused a lot of hassle.

So imagine being the Presiding Officer working with that Clerk. A total head melter.

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121945428#Comment_121945428

Pretty sure Poll Clerks all over the Country earn the same amount.

The only reason Presiding Officer's & Supervisor's pay might differ is because they might be entitled to some Expenses.

Like in Dublin a Security Company comes around & picks up the Boxes at the end of the night. Which is a pain in the arse coz I was stuck there until almost midnight waiting. It used to be Gardai that did it & they were well on the ball.

But in rural areas the Supervisors or Presiding Officers might have to pick them up or drop them off at different locations. There's a few other things they can put in for. Like maybe Mileage if it's a long distance.

So their Expenses would change the outcome of their payment, & possibly how long it takes them to get paid.

But Clerks have a set amount.

It sounds like you got hit with the higher Tax Rate. You can claim it back but you'll have to wait until the end of this year, or early next year.

They should've emailed you a Payslip with a breakdown.

At the bottom of the email it should say that the new Tax system isn't made to accept one off payments. So if you already have an employer listed, they automatically take 40% Tax & 8% USC from the full earnings. You then claim the extra back from the Revenue.

If you are on the low Tax Rate & haven't gone over your Annual Tax Allowance, then you should get pretty much all of it back.

Better still, if you're a Student, or not working at all, then you get it all back. So you'd have a nice chunk of change coming to you down the line.

Just don't forget to claim it back. It's easy on MyGov.ie & go to Revenue. You just need to click Audit for the year & they have the rebate in your Bank Account within a week or two.

That MyGov.ie works really fast.

Just don't fall for any of those Scam sites that offer to do your Tax Rebates for you & charge you a percentage. It's a free service that everyone's entitled to. Tbh I don't know how those clowns get away with charging people for it.

Good luck.

billyhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121947136#Comment_121947136

Thanks for the response. Because I already pay the full rate of tax for some of my pay be a factor? Would I still be entitled to a tax refund at the end of the year?

digidy

Re: Tax & USC Overpayment

------------------------------

Hey, this might help anyone that feels they've been overcharged Tax & USC.

It usually appears at the bottom of the email with your Payslip from the Returning Office.

Also, just to note that you can get to Revenue.ie by going through MyGov.ie

Hope this is of some help to people.

---------------------------------

Please note that under the new Revenue Payroll regulations we are obliged to deduct Tax and USC in accordance with the allowances that Revenue have provide to us in respect of each employee. The allowances given to you may not be correct since the Revenue system is not really designed to cater for one-off payments like this. In particular if you are already registered with another employer on the Revenue system we are likely to have been instructed to deduct tax at 40% and USC at 8% from your full earnings which may be more than you are really liable for. If you think that the rate of tax and/or USC deducted is more than you are liable for then you should contact your local Revenue office and claim a refund of any overpayment. See Revenue.ie for contact details.

-------------------------------

Hope that helps.

Also remember that you can get to Revenue.ie by going through MyGov.ie

Please stick to using the legitimate Revenue.ie & MyGov.ie for Tax Rebates.

Don't use any of those cruddy 3rd party sites that take a percentage for getting you a Rebate.

Everyone is entitled to use the Revenue service free of charge. And if you're entitled to a Rebate then you shouldn't have to pay anyone for the privilege of getting your own money back. Especially when it's a free service to begin with. There's absolutely no reason to give anything to those 3rd party scammers.

Good luck people

dulpit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121947177#Comment_121947177

Always put in a tax return and revenue will figure it out. In all likelihood there's a chance that some tax was incorrect, so you may get something back anyway. But if you pay the huger bracket already, you're unlikely to get the full chunk back.

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121947177#Comment_121947177

You could still be entitled to a Rebate.

Basically what they are saying is that once you have another employer, whether you are on the high or low Tax Bracket, they immediately take 40% & 8% no matter how much you earn.

So they don't actually take into account if you've gone over the Tax threshold or not. They have to immediately assume you have.

It's like how Emergency Tax used to work. The Employer took more than was necessary to cover any outcome, & then when the Revenue sorted the correct amount out, you got back what you were owed.

It's like they keep as much as possible for worst case scenario, so that you don't end up owing any extra, and if anything they owe you money. If that makes sense.

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121947945#Comment_121947945

Exactly this.

It's always worth checking for Rebates. You never know when you've overpaid unless you check.

Plus there's lots of little things you can write off. Medical Bills throughout the year, Work expenses like Mileage, etc.

Years ago you used to be able to pay off Clothes like new Suits, once they were for work. It was ridiculous the amount of stuff you could claim that they don't tell you.

dulpit

Every single year I've gotten some tax back because my employer got it wrong (usually only a euro or two either way). Make sure you add your health expenses, that's basically free money.

SouthWesterly

Got paid today. Just need to claim back my tax

billyhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121966594#Comment_121966594

Do you not have to wait until next January?

dulpit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121966790#Comment_121966790

If you're getting paid for any other paye job, any overspend now will come back to you in next pay, assuming you liaise with revenue to sort it.

Otherwise you can do a balancing statement at end of the year.

Littlefinger

I was a supervisory presiding officer in Tipperary, no sign of any pay yet.

SouthWesterly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121968597#Comment_121968597

Does a supervisor get much more?

Littlefinger

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121968621#Comment_121968621

I'm not sure how much I get compared to a presiding officer. I just got an email to say payment will be made this week so I'll let you know then if that is ok ?

SouthWesterly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121969508#Comment_121969508

Thanks. Would be interested in knowing

billyhead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121969565#Comment_121969565

I believe they only get around 50 euro more then the clerk.

SouthWesterly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121971191#Comment_121971191

Presidium officer gets about 120 more than poll clerk. Supervisor gets more than presiding officer.

I got 546 gross as presiding officer. I don't know if that's more than normal presiding officers as I had responsibility for the station but wasn't a supervisor.

1992ChainGang

Email (for Dublin I believe) said payments would be made today. I haven’t been paid, anyone else in same situation?

Big Bag of Chips

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121971332#Comment_121971332

I got 714 gross as Presiding Officer

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121968597#Comment_121968597

Hey, I was Supervisor in Dublin. We are supposed to be paid the 4th which is today.

I'm not sure the Presiding Officer Rate of Pay this year, but I do know the Supervisor if you want me to PM you.

Still waiting on mine too BTW.

digidy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121972560#Comment_121972560

Yep & getting impatient now.

I need to know they haven't messed up payment as I'm off work for Course & Exams. I need it paid in one go or it will start costing me money.

And could genuinely use the cash right now as was expecting it to be paid weeks ago.

smallgarden

Got an email to say I'd be paid today and emailed a payslip but no sign of either yet. Hopefully both will be in tomorrow

SouthWesterly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121972573#Comment_121972573

Was that including expenses and training?

Big Bag of Chips

€666 presiding officer

€48 Training

I didn't bother claiming expenses. I worked out I'd be entitled to just over €3.