Yes EX! Minesters still get all the gold!!

I red yhumbed you by mistake …Sorry ! BUT Well said Charles .

I think >95% of the adult population would take a job in Dublin if they were told they could have €71,400 p/a in tax free unvouched expenses for a nominal wage of €1/wk

Works for the central bank!! There’s your answer. The rest of us don’t get ridiculous ‘perks’ like that. That’s like the golf trips and a special party fund they get. Don’t try to say both things are the same!!

I once had a job where i was did 12 hour shifts suzie and was on my feet all the time, I still had to buy my own shoes. crazy

And I had a job in the private sector where I worked 12 hour shifts and we were provided with footwear, clothing and special absorbent matting underfoot so it all depends on the type of work. A little more research would need to be done on who gets these allowances rather than knee jerk reactions.

@paul
Are you at risk, standing on used syringes or sharps in your job. If you were and payed for two pairs of safety shoes a year out of your own pocket you would be glad of a few euro towards the cost.

The hate and anger towards the bottom paid PS is astonishing! And I agree with the above comments…..it’s easy to pick on us but not ministers with exorbitant salaries, allowances, and the blind eye to ‘advisors’ pay cap!?!!

If the allowance is stopped, you can be sure workers will stop paying for shoes and wear a pair of runners to work!! Won’t be long before the compensation claims start rolling in….from both workers and public, no safety shoes no picky up dirty sharps….that lovely park you let your kids running around will be filled with them!!!!

Look at the bigger picture!! Don’t let the headlines turn against us!

Well Paul do you not think your employer may have been responsible for your health and safety

I would love for Howlin and CO.to go into a gda station or a prison or a drink tank or the back of an ambulance after some one has shit , pissed , bled (a lot) or puked or done all 4, and then tell me I can not have a pair of shoes or that I have to buy my own uniform…..I am not talking about sick people here .Anyone can be genuinely sick ,I am talking about drunk and drugged people who have no self respect and less for you. Then there are the genuine cases where an accident occurs and you arrive and god only knows what the scene will be like …. 65e does not seem like a lot then …. Allowances are not pensionable ! Ask Bertie and Pee Flynn first for their pensions and jail them ,maybe then Howlin you will get some support from ordinary working folk.
@Paul
was health and safety involved ?

yes ryan of course i would have been delighted to have my shoes paid for, but they were not paid for so i had to buy them myself, which i did without causing any disruption.
Suzie it was simple really, I bought my own shoes or kicked up a fuss and got fired, and I had no problem with that, I never even considered asking my boss for a shoe allowance as he would have thrown me out of the building and rightly so in my opinion, and yes we did have to buy a specific type of shoe for the work

Kerry I don’t think It’s an allowance of 3.5k but a tax credit of a maximum of 3.5k so they can only claim back a percentage they use. I’m not defending it but there is confusion on it. it would be similar to a uniform credit for nurses etc but its completely OTT

Totally agree. Remember Health Minister got his dirty clothes washed by taxpayer

This is more propagandist BS being thrown out in the public arena again and again with the sole aim of getting people to turn against bottom level, lower rung civil servants on 20 odd grand a year and create this public V private argument… Don’t fall for it

The €65 shoe allowance most likely saves thousands each year in sickness claims and medical bills as those workingas doormen porters gatekeepers etc are on their feet all day and require shoes of a far better quality than most other workers!

I can see where you’re coming from, but I don’t think anyone is going to get rich fiddling their €65 a year shoe allowance…
Unvouched TD expenses are a different story though…

For new entrants!! What’s all that about? Howlin, either grow yourself a backbone or resign! You’re starting to sound pathetic !

Well I supose you would rather the state pay out thousands on compensation to workers who get jabbed with needles as no safety work wear is provided?! This is a reality. PS workers on the lowest scale are being scapegoated.! Don’t let them decide and conquer there are finer details to this story.

*divide* typo

Journal,

Does this relate to PPE boots or fancy clarks shoes?!

Safe foot wear is a necessity in a lot of public service jobs ,particularly if you arer on your feet for 12 hrs or more …65e is not that much as I had often had to spend that and twice that maybe at least twice a year… then 200e on orthodics …

@susie
Boots do own brand orthotics for €32
FYI. ;-)

Jambbie
Thanks ! but they were not good enough for 12 hr shifts 5/6 days /nights a week… I had mine prescribed and fitted specially to suit my feet .Made all the difference and well worth the spend . Maybe boots ones have improved as I do not work any more .

Suzie,

A lot of private sector workers are on their feet all day and guess what?! They buy their own bloody shoes!!

Hitthepotthomas
Yes I Know that. Is it health and safety ? Tese allowances were agreed and part of other ‘deals’ with depts . Take your anger out on the ministers not the workers.

Is it shoe allowance for Our Gardai and if it is it is a disgrace to stop the allowance… The shoes are part of a uniform so the next thing the will have to buy the Uniforms next
Howling Howlin how about stopping the Cleaning bill for all the TD’s first second get rid of the travel Expences for the TD’s we all have to cover our own travel expenses to get to work This alone would certainly start the recovery in Ireland so Howlin Stop howling and do your job and leave An Gardai Siochana alone

Bernadette. The private sector gets a tax credit not an allowance which reduces the paye they pay each month. Uniforms would probably e15 a month. All employers have a duty of care and should supply safety and where the employer does not maintain the equipment such as a uniform then you should get a tax credit reducing paye payable. Just wondering would you and I am assuming you are public service agree to a tax credit to replace allowances?

@ Eugene O’Rourke no I am not a Public Servant and never was I worked in the private sector all my working life am not working any more But I have Family that do work in an Gardai and Prison Service and I appreciate the dangers of not wearing a certain Quality Footwear both for protection and safety The Politicians should be taking hits before they cut safety shoes and clothing on the workers of Ireland

@ Bernadette. I agree that PPE should be supplied to all and allowances / tax credits were justified. 2

Maybe you should direct your anger at the laundry allowances (3,500e) the ministers get ….You if you ever spent time I mean real time on your feet you would then realise how important it is to have decent foot wear…. Not only have you to protect your feet from all the standing and walking you do , your feet must also be protected from assault , I am not being funny .

You are assuming that I don’t spend all day on my feet…I don’t have any anger towards public servants as such. It’s more directed towards your unions and the government at allowing this to be the case. I don’t agree with laundry allowances either. There should be no allowances. The employer should provide equipment, clothing or tools as part of the role if there is a safety aspect or nessecity.

Enda Kenny should set aside all personal feelings about Vincent Browne, put Ireland first.

I am not assuming anything . Of course people spend time on their feet and they should be provided with safety equipment , so please people do not direct your anger at people who are going through similar struggles to make ends meet . These allowances have been there for years and years and were agreed in the past by the relevant departments . They are vital for a persons safety and security , as much as skin sanitiser is relevant to a surgeon …

@susie….there is no point in discussing this with you as your emotions overtake your ability to read my comments properly.

I’m an employer in the private sector and I provide protective footwear for employees who need it. I presume this allowance is not for ordinary office workers, but staff in areas where proper footwear is essential. We’re very quick to jump on ANYTHING when it comes to the public service and – you what? – I think the media and the ministers like it that way. The media gets the readers/viewers and the ministers get to deflect attention from their allowances. I find it galling and insulting that miniters who earn in excess of 100k get laundy allowances, for instance.

That is a unnecessary comment Grant ! I got shoes (not an allowance when I worked) but I had to look after my own transport to and from work . Like I have already said some allowances may be unnecessary , but not ones that interfere with a workers safety and ability to carry out their duties professionally and securely. By all means Grant if you get a mileage allowance for your job and or a car to carry out your job that you can then use in your private time( company car) , I am the last person to begrudge you …..

The 3.5k is not an allowance it is a tax credit which is very different as the tax credit can be claimed as a percentage of the laundry bill. it is completely OTT and should be reduced in line with nurses uniform tax credit for example.

If you look at the Gardai’s uniform they wear stab proof vest and their shoes must be a pacific type shoe to protect their feet and backs because they do not sit at desks Prisons Officers I assume are the same Ambulance Crews also and Nurses too about the shoes The Private Sector get a tax free allowance attached to their income for allowance also so I wonder is Howlin talking about stopping the tax allowance for the Private sector too Well I say bring it on Howlin Cos you think the House Hold Charge Protests are a thorn in your side well this suspension of clothing allowance on our tax will be political suicide fir the Government

@ Bernadette. I am not saying they should not get a good quality shoes and they definitaely should get all the PPE available as with all employee’s. I think personally the Dept should supply the shoes to make sure they are up to standard. I too have family/friends in the Gardai and Public Service and I know the thankless job they do. The point is that the for example they get an allowance of x amount onto their salary so it increases there income and where as in the private sector you get a tax credit (not an allowance). The credit is then offset against your PAYE deductions but your gross overall income is not increasing compared to allowances. I have also said below that allowances can be a benefit to the tax payer as pension’s are calculated based on income minus the allowances but we need to find a balance as Define Benefit Pensions are gold and are not easy (and if you get one very expensive) on the private market. Its trying to find the balance that is right. There is to much Private vs Public instead of how each can help each other from the Public Sector helping start up businesses and the private sector helping to cut costs in the Public Sector by outsourcing (where it can be done and feesable to do so).

Barry, if I’ve read your posts correctly you have stated that 58% of public sector workers earn less than the average industrial wage (in spite of the fact that average level of qualification is higher in the public vs. the private sector) yet we should be tearing up their contracts, banning them from joining a union and re-employing them with reduced terms and conditions?

And unvouched expenses !?????

How would you judge a nurses or Garda payment on how many people get better and if they die they don’t get paid or the garda pay on how many arrests and convictions

Apologies to every one but Barry Sheehan that suggestion is pure and utter BOLL**. How dare you think that you can suspend Gardai , army , navy , nursing, teaching,fire and ambulance personnel on a whim of Howlins suggestions . Have you any conception of the insult you have dealt ? No not for a minute have you ever considered the jobs these good people do. …Yes there are some unnecessary allowances Ministers laundry ,for one ,travel expenses for td’s to get to Leinster house etc., . Maybe you should sit down some evening and watch real life rescues / road wars/ night cops/ jail/any of those programes altho not Irish I can tell you it is the same all over the world … Then come back and tell us who you want suspended and rehired …

@Jerry and Susie. Firstly, I said ‘suspend the right to associate’ not suspend public sector workers. Secondly, there is no rational basis why public sector employees should be insulated from the recession just because they happen to be employed in the public sector. I repeat any allowances/bonuses should be at the discretion of the em

You want to use the fact that the country has been pillaged by corrupt tycoons and Td’s to set us back to the middle ages? why not bring back serfdom as well?

Employer. A rejection of the Fiscal Compact Treaty will bring these issues into narrow focus as the State will have abandon the Croke Park deal. Finally, @ Susie there is no need for such an emotive outburst and it distracts from your argument. Front line services should of course be protected as much as possible, but these comprise a very small number of public sector workers. For example, I believe somewhere in the region of 80% of HSE staff are administrators.

Mark L’ingarde
Have you not realised ….that is exactly where they want us , going cap in hand and wearing rags !
F**k Howlin and the rest of them ! Clueless and immoral !

Barry
I will be voting No for the Austerity treaty ,I will not fall for the blackmail clause the government have inserted into the the treaty . Having spent my working life as a public servant , in situations that no money could compensate , to have it reduced to a mere 65e by other ordinary workers ,just as I was, yes I am emotional. I paid my dues ,and I continue to pay them through taxes and cuts .
By the way . I agree that there seems to be a lot of admin workers ie. management level in the HSE. but it is not fair to just say ,get rid of them ….they too were employed to carry out their own jobs . We must stick together and stand up to this government and say NO