Jobseeker pay related benefit - no increase for children

[Parazard2]

Posting as a heads up to others.
After 15 years of working I was made redundant. I'm a single parent of x2 young children. I'm entitled to the new pay related Job seeker benefit.
However I assumed the same rules as jobseeker benefit would apply and I would also receive an increase for my kids. I learnt the hard way last week that this has now been scrapped. No increase for dependants at all, it is just a flat rate for everyone regardless of family circumstances.
I am getting an extra €100 per week x 13 weeks, then an extra €56 for another x 13 weeks compared to what I would have with the old jobseeker benefit.
I will also get 8 weeks of enhanced NCS subsidy after which I will lose all entitlement to it if not back at work. After 6 months I will actually be better off on one parent family and I will be on my own with childcare expenses (so much for encouraging people to work!), and of course there is no help towards a mortgage either.

So in total I'm getting about 2.5k more back in the form of benefits overall. Better than not of course, but it is not quite feeling like much of a leg up to 'ease' the transition due to a sudden change of circumstances!

Just thought I'd flag as most do not seem to realize that with this is how it's been implemented.

 

[TomEdison]

I learnt the hard way last week that this has now been scrapped. No increase for dependants at all, it is just a flat rate for everyone regardless of family circumstances.

It's not a flat rate; it's pay-related. That's kind of the point.

You can choose to Optional Jobseeker's Allowance (which is not pay-related, but does incorporate supplements for dependants) if that would produce a better outcome for you. But it's means-tested, so you'd have to be quite badly off before it would be likely to produce a better outcome.

 

[S class]

The old Jobseekers benefit scheme continues to run alongside the new pay related scheme. If you meet the Prsi qualification rules for the old scheme and if t gives you a higher payment you should cease the pay related scheme and reapply for the old scheme.

 

[Parazard2]

I think folk are missing the point, so maybe I didn't make it very clearly. There is no increase for children with the new jobseeker benefit. Whether you have dependants or not you will just receive the one amount. It misses the point that having dependants adds costs.
The old jobseeker benefit is being retired, or so I was told.
I am better off on this new payment, but not by much. My point is that it's not doing too much to really help break the fall.

 

[bkenn14]

It's not a flat rate; it's pay-related. That's kind of the point.

S class
op said they will be better off under the new scheme,

No harm in pointing out the old pay-related scheme that ran until around 1986 was a far better thought out system from OP point of view, % of pay related was higher leaving you no worse off after tax and PRSI/USC, for 6/9 months but the system also pushed you back to work force because there was less supports once PRSI tapered off,

The problem the op has with the new pay related system did not arise with the old scheme which is how PRSI got its Name in the first instance,

OP you paid 15 years of PRSI and now you are getting a bad deal compared to when it was set up first so don't be afraid to look for every support
you can from the state,


When they changed the old PRSI system after 1986 which reduced your now called unemployment benefit to the same as someone who never worked
The state finished up having to put in place other supports costing a lot more But that is there problem ,
Don't be afraid to check out are your getting all of your entitlements until you return to work after spending 15 years paying in to the state,

as you said you were better off if you never worked But not working will catch up with you in the future,

So for now make sure you get all of your entitlements until you return to the workforce that are not prsi related,

Good luck with getting a new job and Qualifying for a Mortgage and getting your forever home,

 

[llgon]

From Citizen's Information:

'Jobseeker's Pay-Related Benefit (JPRB) is a payment based on your earnings from work before you became unemployed.'

'The amount of JPRB you get is directly linked to your earnings from work before you became unemployed.'

I think folk are missing the point, so maybe I didn't make it very clearly. There is no increase for children with the new jobseeker benefit.

So that is the point, it's pay-related. You don't get paid more if you have children but if you did it would be reflected in the JPRB.

Whether you have dependants or not you will just receive the one amount. It misses the point that having dependants adds costs.

So again, the point is it's pay-related. If the cost of dependents outweigh the pay-related benefit there are other options open to you, as other posters have alluded to.

 

[llgon]

as you said you were better off if you never worked

I think the OP said the opposite?

 

[Parazard2]

There are no other options open for me to help support my children. If anyone is aware of any please let me know!
The flat rate means there are no increases for dependants and you get the same regardless of your situation etc. I used the wrong terminology it's an "individualized" rather than flat rate.

 

[S class]

If you are advantaged for the final 13 weeks of your claim by the old Jobseekers Benefit scheme, you should try applying to change back to that scheme at that time.

 

[bkenn14]

Unded

I think the OP said the opposite?

I said(as OP said you were better off if you never worked) Thanks for pointing it to me llgon that is not what she said,
What the OP said was(so much for encouraging people to work)
Hi Parazard2
You might be better off talking to another single parent in your locality who is not working to check if you are claiming everything you can while you are out of work at present , and your local citizen advice centre, I suspect there may be other supports(not Job Related) you might not know about which you might be able to claim,

 

[ReesesPieces]

Hi, just to say your info on the NCS is not right - I went on income assessed NCS while on mat leave and had an involved and helpful conversation with someone on their phone line.

If you’re already on an income assessed claim you can just keep that going until whenever it ends (they’re usually a year) and it will be worth whatever your current rate is up to 45 hours a week. If you’d get a higher rate based on your current income you can do a sudden change assessment based on the last four weeks of income and that income assessed claim will only be valid for 6 months (though you can then apply for a new one).

What I think you’re referencing is if you’re not in work or study the income assessed rate only gets you 20 hours a week, but I was told that study doesn’t have to be a degree course or anything: you can ring and check but I’d assume something like a springboard online course would cover you. And you’re always eligible for 45 hours a week of universal whether you’re in work or not, which is what we get and currently 2.14/hour. So absolutely not the case you stop being eligible for NCS after six months unemployment and worth giving them a ring if you think that sounds more useful for you than what you thought.

That said it is an extremely tough situation and I hope it all works out v quickly.