Polish manual worker in Hotel suffered occupational injury, entitlements?

J

Joe Nonety

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I know this Polish guy who works in a kitchen of a hotel. In his job he does lots of heavy lifting of items 60lbs or more and as a result a couple of bones in his hand are coming out of place. He was wondering if the PRSI he pays will cover the cost of a visit to the doctor as he cannot afford the €40 otherwise.
Does anyone know if PRSI will cover this? He has less than a year of payments in case that makes any difference.
 
Re: Prsi

Prsi
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He was wondering if the PRSI he pays will cover the cost of a visit to the doctor as he cannot afford the €40 otherwise.
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PRSI does not cover such expenses. See here for what the different classes of PRSI cover. If he is low paid then he could try applying for a medical card [broken link removed] or otherwise or check out the other Welfare schemes relating to injury, disability, illness. Has he considered just going directly to hospital A&E (although without a GP referral this will c. €60) and getting public treatment for any injury that he has suffered? Might also be worth his while contacting the local and/or Health Centre (use the same page on OASIS to locate these) for advice on his entitlements in this situation.
He has less than a year of payments in case that makes any difference.
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Just wondering - do immigrant/migrant workers from other EU countries get PRSI credits for any national/social insurance payments that they have made in the past in their home country? I can't see anything obvious about this .
 
Re: Prsi

I think that social insurance credits are only transferrable for pension purposes, not to help you qualify for social welfare payments between member states.

If this man has been living in Ireland for 1 year, then he will not satisfy the habitual residency requirements for social assistance payments. He will qualify for a social welfare benefit payment provided he has enough contributions and meets the other requirements of the various schemes.

We have no detail as to this persons income so it is impossible to say if he will qualify for a medical card or a GP visit card. The income guidelines that apply for medical cards and GP Visit Cards are all outlined on the Oasis website.

When someone applies for a medical card, they are also automatically assessed for a GP Visit Card (and vice versa). If he does not qualify for one, he may qualify for the other.

Other than that, he will have to pay the full cost of visiting A&E or his GP. These costs are as Clubman has outlined above.

[broken link removed]:
 
Re: Prsi

Contributions in other EU/EEA states are fully useable for qualification for all benefits. The problem is getting the social to recongise them. Loads of time and effort will be involved.
 
Re: Prsi

Sorry - you are correct:

Contributions made in other EU Member states are taken into account for for social insurance-based payments.

Presumably, this Polish person would need a copy of his social insurance record from the Polish authorities therefore in order to qualify for benefits in Ireland? I think the relevant forms are E301 and E104.

Staff in his local social welfare office here in Ireland could probably advise on how to obtain them (or may even apply for them on his behalf).
 
Re: Prsi

If the PRSI doesn't cover it surely the company he works for should pay for the medical treatment of a work related injury?
 
Re: Prsi

Does the company have an accident log and safety policy - as I believe they are legally obliged to have? Did the employee formally notify the employer of the accident/injury? Might also be worth checking the HSA site for details of legislation in this area. Does the contract of employment provide for any cover in this area over and above any statutory cover?
 
Hi Joe,

Ive changed the title of your question to hopefully more accurately reflect your question. Let me know if it needs to be further edited.

You could contact a trade union, they can be very helpful in this regard.

How long has the Polish man paid PRSI here?

aj
 
if this happened at work, he should go to his doctor, get a letter stating it was an work related incident (photocopy it!!) and bring it to his employeer along with a receipt to get a refund (thats what we do at work)
 
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