Welcomed Christmas Bonus for Welfare but what about Workers on Breadline?

As confirmed in Budget 2019 a Christmas Bonus of 100% was paid in the first week of December 2018 to long term welfare recipients, approximately 900,000 recipients costing an estimated €265 million.

Meanwhile PAYE and Self-Employed workers who get up every morning to keep the country running are still paying USC and the same taxes all year round and will have to struggle right through to January Payday. While we’re really happy that families on welfare payments won’t have to struggle so much over Christmas, we’re thinking that it would be nice for the Government to acknowledge PAYE workers also. For some it will be a long & worrying time, unfortunately not all workers are better off because they are “lucky” enough to have a job. The real truth is that for many Irish workers their salary is just not enough to cover the very basics. Rent or mortgage, food, utilities, childcare, medical expenses, school costs, etc., and any change to normal routine of basic living brings escalated stress when you’re living on the bread line. Not all employers can afford to pay workers a Bonus either, so it’s hit and miss for some employees and even those that get a Christmas Bonus will be taxed on it.

It raises a number of questions, one being should workers, particularly those on minimum wage receive a tax break in December to get them through Christmas and to thank them for getting up in hail, rain and snow all year round?

Note: The Christmas bonus should not be confused with the annual “double week” of welfare and pension payments made just before Christmas. This is where one week’s payment is made in advance because of bank and post office closures.) The bonus is an additional payment. Find out more here about the  Christmas Payment Arrangements  & bonus.

Source of Bonus information: http://www.moneyguideireland.com/christmas-bonus-2018-pensions-and-welfare.html