Faces of Joblessness in Ireland a People-Centred Perspective on Employment Barriers and Policies

Cliff edges in the Irish tax-benefit system

“…As pointed out by the OECD (Browne et al, 2018) and the Commission on Taxation and Welfare (2022), both Pay-Related Social Insurance (PRSI) and the Universal Social Charge (USC) are characterised by the presence of a cliff edge. These cliff edges occur as individuals with an income below a certain level (€352 per week for PRSI, 1 and €13,000 per year for the USC) 2 are exempt from these charges.…”

“…Another cliff edge identified by the OECD (Browne et al, 2018) is related to the 'four-in-seven' rule: that those working part-time can receive Jobseeker's Benefit (JSB) or JSA, at a pro-rata rate. This is only the case, however, if they are unemployed for at least four out of seven consecutive days.…”

“…Likewise, any housing support that gets withdrawn as income rises will create a disincentive to increase work hours or to avail of opportunities to increase one's wage, for example through promotion. As noted by the OECD (Browne et al, 2018) there has been an improvement in recent years regarding housing supports. While a cliff edge exists in the Rent Supplement scheme, whereby it is withdrawn if an individual works more than 30 hours per week, long-term Rent Supplement receipt is being replaced by HAP.…”

Faces of joblessness in Finland

“…However, while participation rates among older and unskilled workers remain higher than in many other OECD countries, there exist large gaps in participation rates between old and young workers, and between the low-and highly skilled. Furthermore, employees in occupations characterised by declining employment, who are likely to have been exposed to technological change, participate only modestly in adult education, especially if they are older or less-skilled (Asplund, Kauhanen and Vanhala, 2019 [42]).…”