# Difficulty figuring out income following possible redundancy



## Confused74 (29 May 2014)

Our current situation is this:

My husband and I are both working, his salary is approx €38K per annum, mine is approx €41K per annum.

We have two young children.

My husbands company has looked for expressions of interest for voluntary redundancy.  The lump sum details are still being hammered out between company and union.  It is highly likely that if the company do not get the numbers for voluntary they will go down the road of compulsory redundancies.  They are also looking for drastic changes in terms and conditions such as reduced sick pay and changes in rosters.  This last one would impact greatly on my husband, his health and our ability to care for our children.  If the company do not get the redundancies and all of the other changes they will look for an across the board paycut which would basically sink us as we are only currently keeping our head above water.

My questions are these.  
If he was to take Vol Red:

What happens to pension contributions made to date?
Is there a maximum lump sum, read somewhere about a max €600 per week of service regardless of salary when finishing?
Can you apply for Jobseekers if you take voluntary redundancy?
What impact will lump sum (redundancy) have on welfare payments?
What impact would my salary have on his application for benefits
How long waiting for answer on claim, i.e. back log?
Can tax credits be transferred to spouse, is it beneficial to do so?


There is another aspect to this.  One of our children has a lifelong medical condition which qualifies him for Domicillary (sp?) Care Allowance.  To date we have managed to remain in the work place with huge help from our families however that may change.  We have looked at the possibility of Carers Benefit/Allowance but are very unsure of how this all works.  This is mainly due to the fact that we have, luckily, not had to claim for many benefits before.  I have read pages on line but am unsure of the following in this area:

Can husband request and receive carers leave from employer, i.e. can employer refuse?
Can he take the vol redundancy and apply then for carers benefit?
Would it be an idea to pre-empt employer plan to make him redundant by applying for Carers Leave.  As I understand it, his job needs to be kept while on carers leave?
Would my salary impact on his application for Carers Benefit?
What additional supports can be claimed for?

I do wish to state that we are not a couple who foolishly got in over our heads or that we have any sense of entitlement.  We do understand that it is our responsibility to meet our commitments.  However we are so unfamiliar with welfare claims and the rest that we want to try and understand as much as possible before making any decisions.

Any advice appreciated.


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## wbbs (29 May 2014)

I won't even start to answer them as I only know the answers to some but I will advise you  in addition to any advice you get here to  take a trip to your nearest Citizens Information office, they are very good with advice regarding any benefits such as Carers Benefit etc.


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## Confused74 (29 May 2014)

Thanks wbbs.

I contacted Citz Adv this morning and despite taking my number and calling me back they were unable to answer any of the above.  I will have to try the tax office as well but had hoped to get some feedback from all the helpful people here.

Thanks again

Confused74


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## partnership (29 May 2014)

He can apply for carers benefit and take vol redundancy just look at dates. He can transfer some of his credits to you. Best of luck


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## wbbs (29 May 2014)

Try another Cit Info office if there is one near you, they certainly should be able to answer some of those queries or alternatively try their phone helpline, that might even be better.


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## ang1170 (31 May 2014)

A lot of your questions are probably answered at: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/unemployment_and_redundancy/redundancy/

For example, the €600 figure you mention is the relates to the maximum statutory amount, voluntary redundancies would normal include a larger sum.

Other parts of this site have information on social welfare.


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## Confused74 (3 Jun 2014)

Thanks for ther replies.  Looks like we will have to do a lot of searching to get a full picture.


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## wbbs (3 Jun 2014)

To answer some of the first part for you -

Pension - this will probably be sorted out in the negotiations for redundancy between company and union, options will most like either be let it stay where it is until retirement age or you may have the option of moving it to another provider or some type of approved investment.  You should hopefully be given advice on this by union or staff representatives.

€600 limit - this max weekly amount relates to statutory redundancy, your case is different in that I presume a better package than statutory redundancy is being negotiated.

JB - You can indeed apply for jobseekers benefit if you take voluntary redundancy assuming he is available for and seeking work (this is where the timing re the Carers benefit is important, you definitely need to get advice from Cit Info on that)

The affect on the JB claim of the redundancy payment depends on the amount, worst case scenario is not allowed claim for first 9 weeks of unemployment.

Your income will have no affect whatsoever on his jobseekers benefit payment, however once that finishes and if he is not working by then the jobseekers allowance will be means tested and your income will matter.  It may be more beneficial to claim Family Income Supplement at that time, again this doesn't take into account anything you may do re the Carers payment.

Back logs depend on the particular office.

You can definitely transfer his tax credits, not all are transferable but tax office will advise you, and it is beneficial to do this while he is out of work.


I can't help with the Carer's benefit situation, I really think Cit Info are the best for this, just to find the right person as a lot are volunteers and the knowledge level varies and different people are expert in different areas.


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