Crazy allowances or perks

draiochtanois · 22-10-2013 04:19PM #1

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Princess Consuela Bananahammock · 22-10-2013 04:21PM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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Excuse the ignorance, but why is this a bad thing? I would have thought getting people into a better position to get a job would be a good thing - especially if they haven;t completeled secondary education?

DoesNotCompute · 22-10-2013 04:22PM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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That was only half an hour, not an hour, and it was scrapped years ago (Croke Park put an end to it, if I remember correctly)

Riskymove · 22-10-2013 04:23PM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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nope....never did anyway....30 mins

draiochtanois · 22-10-2013 04:23PM

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Sleepy · 22-10-2013 04:26PM

The term-time and job-sharing contracts that many Public Sector workers have are in no way efficient but I'm not sure if they'd quite count as "perks".

Pat Mustard · 22-10-2013 04:43PM

Unvouched expenses for Independent TDs, on top of existing salary.

€40,000 per year, I think. It is going to be cut to €37,500 if I heard correctly.

It's still untaxed and unvouched - no receipts required. They could put it into their back pockets.

I am not suggesting that we get rid of expenses for TDs for a minute. What I am saying is that allowing unvouched expenses is mad.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock · 22-10-2013 04:50PM

The Mustard wrote: »

Unvouched expenses for Independent TDs, on top of existing salary.

€40,000 per year, I think. It is going to be cut to €37,500 if I heard correctly.

It's still untaxed and unvouched - no receipts required. They could put it into their back pockets.

I am not suggesting that we get rid of expenses for TDs for a minute. What I am saying is that allowing unvouched expenses is mad.

Untaxed is fair enough - it's not income.

draiochtanois · 22-10-2013 05:01PM

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chopper6 · 22-10-2013 05:35PM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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No "we" don't.

And if you think an hour a month off is a big deal you really need to get out more often.

#****stirringthread

draiochtanois · 22-10-2013 06:44PM

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Stheno · 22-10-2013 06:50PM

The Mustard wrote: »

Unvouched expenses for Independent TDs, on top of existing salary.

€40,000 per year, I think. It is going to be cut to €37,500 if I heard correctly.

It's still untaxed and unvouched - no receipts required. They could put it into their back pockets.

I am not suggesting that we get rid of expenses for TDs for a minute. What I am saying is that allowing unvouched expenses is mad.

When it's cut it is being put under vouched expenses as part of the reform.
Was on Matt Cooper this evening

sarumite · 22-10-2013 07:20PM

chopper6 wrote: »

No "we" don't.

And if you think an hour a month off is a big deal you really need to get out more often.

#****stirringthread

Since it was one of the savings under the CPA, its really not worth talking about....however this completely misses the point.

Scortho · 22-10-2013 07:24PM

Do the lady soldiers in the army still get the nightdress allowance?

Nurses get a uniform allowance and as far as I remember a washing allowance for their uniform... Really felt like sending the mother a bill.

Just found this... The staff at Chester Beatty library get an allowance for making boxes!
http://per.gov.ie/review-of-public-sector-allowances-and-premium-payments-business-cases-submitted-for-review/

The best one though was the Greek civil servants going on strike because their allowance for using a computer was removed. The allowance...6 days annual leave.
Mightn't be a paper of record, but it is a link.
http://m.thestar.com/#!/world/redirect/dd688d01f9ce7656c5f658a9369ef74f

While the private sector does have allowances, it is nowhere near as bad as the allowances in the public sector.
The last place I worked in gave zero allowances, zero bonuses but good core pay.
Which is probably the way the public sector should be done instead.
Wasn't there an allowance for teachers who had a degree? Yet to be a teacher you had to go to college to get a degree?

woodoo · 22-10-2013 07:45PM

The great scandal in the public service currently is travel and subsistence.

Gumbo · 22-10-2013 08:22PM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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Cheques are cashed in banks. Banks = private sector.
Don't think the PS do 35 hours anymore, more like the standard 35-39 excluding lunches.

My brother works for a large MNC. He travels around for work. They pay him over night stays etc if he is working outside of Dublin. When he has work in Meath, Wicklow or any other surrounding county he gets 127e and that's meant to pay for a room for the night and an evening meal. He just pockets it and drives down a bit earlier in the morning.

My mate works for a drinks company. They get an internal wallet that allows them free drink every month. He comes home with trays or orange, monster, mi-wadi every week!

Don't hear too much about perks anymore as people are afraid to openly talk about them with the way spitefullness has gone in our country since the recession hit.

Scortho · 22-10-2013 08:23PM

Bigger question?
Who still gets paid by cheque? :eek:

Gumbo · 22-10-2013 08:27PM

Scortho wrote: »

Bigger question?
Who still gets paid by cheque? :eek:

One or 2 of my mates do at the moment. It's quite uncommon though. I haven't got paid by cheque in over 10 years!

Scortho · 22-10-2013 08:30PM

kceire wrote: »

One or 2 of my mates do at the moment. It's quite uncommon though. I haven't got paid by cheque in over 10 years!

Should have clarified I was on about the public sector.

Thered be a few small private sector companies doing it Id say, but I know I certainly wouldnt be happy getting paid by cheque

kupus · 22-10-2013 08:34PM

chopper6 wrote: »

No "we" don't.

And if you think an hour a month off is a big deal you really need to get out more often.

#****stirringthread

It is when you have 100,000 plus people taking that time off

= let me get the maths straight on this....100,000 thousand hours of work a month
x
12 months

= a shedload of money....

However its not the money thats my concern

Its what the hell are they doing with this time thats the problem and how in all fairness is the civil service such an inefficient mess.

thats my problem.

Gumbo · 22-10-2013 09:11PM

kupus wrote: »

It is when you have 100,000 plus people taking that time off

= let me get the maths straight on this....100,000 thousand hours of work a month
x
12 months

= a shedload of money....

However its not the money thats my concern

Its what the hell are they doing with this time thats the problem and how in all fairness is the civil service such an inefficient mess.

thats my problem.

Put away your calculator and put your common sense hat back on. It doesn't happen anymore and hasn't happened in years so get over it.

Scortho · 22-10-2013 09:21PM

kceire wrote: »

Put away your calculator and put your common sense hat back on. It doesn't happen anymore and hasn't happened in years so get over it.

Kceire with all due respect it was response to a poster who said an hour off every month was no big deal.

While it might have been eradicated in the last few years, that prevailing attitude of some members of the ps is a big deal.
While there are many good workers in the ps, it does have its fair share of useless employees.

Personally I'd rather a system where the whiffwaff get cut and the good employees get paid well based on their ability and not how many years service they have. Similar to the private sector.

Gumbo · 22-10-2013 09:25PM

Scortho wrote: »

Kceire with all due respect it was response to a poster who said an hour off every month was no big deal.

While it might have been eradicated in the last few years, that prevailing attitude of some members of the ps is a big deal.
While there are many good workers in the ps, it does have its fair share of useless employees.

Personally I'd rather a system where the whiffwaff get cut and the good employees get paid well based on their ability and not how many years service they have. Similar to the private sector.

Yes but the poster asked what was PS staff doing with this time in the present tense. He is obviously not aware that it doesn't occur anymore and where it did, it was only for a small selection of civil servants, not the wider public service.

Pat Mustard · 22-10-2013 10:25PM

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

Untaxed is fair enough - it's not income.

Sorry, I didn't put that well. I didn't mean that it should be taxed. I meant that as it was unvouched, if it was not spent, the potential was there for it to be pocketed. The net effect would be a maximum of about €41,000 tax free (original €40k figure slightly out as well.)

draiochtanois wrote: »

Do you have a reference for this?

This is all I have at the moment. Starts about 9.00 minutes in. Matt Cooper interviewing Catherine Halloran of the Irish Daily Star (and Finian McGrath, TD).

They say Bertie introduced this in 2007.

Stheno wrote: »

When it's cut it is being put under vouched expenses as part of the reform.
Was on Matt Cooper this evening

You are right. I wasn't paying close enough attention as I was driving. They are planning to make them vouch it now.

sarumite · 22-10-2013 10:27PM

kceire wrote: »

My brother works for a large MNC. He travels around for work. They pay him over night stays etc if he is working outside of Dublin. When he has work in Meath, Wicklow or any other surrounding county he gets 127e and that's meant to pay for a room for the night and an evening meal. He just pockets it and drives down a bit earlier in the morning.

This actually quite common in both the PS and private sector. Its hardly a perk though considering the employer is asking you to go out of your way to travel. Although its highly unusual to be given a room the day before an event if you are within commutable distance. It makes perfect sense if a person has to fly somewhere that they do it the day before if the event is starting early in the morning. Personally I have received a daily allowance working in both sectors and see it as much as a nuisance allowance as anything else. When I think about the fact that I am stuck in a hotel in a city where I don't know anyone and I have probably travelled on behalf of my employer on my own free time, the very least they could do is provide a hotel room and hot meal.

Michael D Not Higgins · 22-10-2013 10:35PM

One that I heard from Irish Rail was that some drivers still get an hour's pay for starting up the fire for a steam engine even though they're all diesel.

spank_inferno · 22-10-2013 11:10PM

Is there still a day off for the Kings birthday?

(if this has been rolled into the annual leave allowance then yes it is still in place.... Its just not on whenever that kings birthday was.)

Idbatterim · 22-10-2013 11:37PM

My brother works for a large MNC. He travels around for work. They pay him over night stays etc if he is working outside of Dublin. When he has work in Meath, Wicklow or any other surrounding county he gets 127e and that's meant to pay for a room for the night and an evening meal. He just pockets it and drives down a bit earlier in the morning.

My mate works for a drinks company. They get an internal wallet that allows them free drink every month. He comes home with trays or orange, monster, mi-wadi every week!

Don't hear too much about perks anymore as people are afraid to openly talk about them with the way spitefullness has gone in our country since the recession hit.

This comparison with the private sector is ridiculous, if a private sector company withdraw all their cash and burn it to the ground I couldnt give a toss, if there is waste in the PS its a totally different kettle of fish... Because it could be used to reduce the deficit, invest in jobs, bla bla bla...

hidinginthebush · 23-10-2013 02:06AM

sarumite wrote: »

This actually quite common in both the PS and private sector. Its hardly a perk though considering the employer is asking you to go out of your way to travel. Although its highly unusual to be given a room the day before an event if you are within commutable distance. It makes perfect sense if a person has to fly somewhere that they do it the day before if the event is starting early in the morning. Personally I have received a daily allowance working in both sectors and see it as much as a nuisance allowance as anything else. When I think about the fact that I am stuck in a hotel in a city where I don't know anyone and I have probably travelled on behalf of my employer on my own free time, the very least they could do is provide a hotel room and hot meal.

I'd agree with this. I work for in the private sector and had to go to a training course down in Cork, usually based in Dub. I chose to drive down, planning to claim the mileage expense. To be fair though, it involved getting up at the crack of dawn, driving down there for 3 hours, 3 back again after the course. I was absolutely smashed. Sure you get a few bob for it, but when you consider that you're essentially working 6 hours overtime, and have to cover the cost of petrol, tolls, and the physical tiredness, the money just about covers the effort.

mathepac · 23-10-2013 02:20AM

There used to be a crowd of PS fork-lift drivers who got paid a special allowance - for driving fork-lifts.

Go figure.

From last year.

Geuze · 23-10-2013 07:49AM

draiochtanois wrote: »

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This may help:
http://www.oireachtas.ie/parliament/tdssenators/parliamentarystandardallowance/

Crazy allowances or perks

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