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Irish building firm MMD Construction has announced plans this morning to create 100 new jobs - almost doubling its workforce - over the next two years following a surge in demand for its services.The company, which has or is developing several landmark health and education projects for the state in Cork, will also mark the official opening of its new €6m office building at the Cork Airport Business Park later today, with Tanaiste Simon Coveney in attendance.Recruitment is already underway for positions such as project managers, engineers, BIM technicians, carpenters and plasterers.The new roles will help the firm to meet growing demand for its construction services from several sectors, including pharmaceutical, healthcare, residential and education.The firm is currently building the massive €30m Carrigaline Education Campus in Co Cork.It is one of the largest and most ambitious combined primary and secondary school development projects in the country.Source: Breakingnews.ie

100 new construction Jobs announced in Cork

Do you love Disney more than life itself? Do people consider you the “mom” of the group when you’re on vacation? Do you have more Mickey ears in your closet than you’d care to admit? If you answered yes to any of these questions, this might just be the perfect new career for you. Disney is searching for a team of park experts to make up their 2020 Disney Parks Moms Panel — a group devoted to helping future guests plan their best trip ever by answering their questions and giving advice at DisneyParksMomsPanel.com. A resource that’s been in place since 2008 (and now available in four different languages), the Disney Parks Moms Panel is comprised of more than just moms — anyone who has mastered the art of planning a Disney vacation is invited to apply, from grandparents to fun uncles to kid-free Disney fanatics. Panel members know the Disney brand inside and out — each specializing in either Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line or Disney Vacation Club — and know exactly what steps to take to make the most of any Disney experience. Their commitment includes answering approximately 10 to 20 questions per week, with each answer taking around 20 minutes to write.Members don’t get paid, but according to the Disney Parks Moms Panel website, they will be rewarded for their time and effort with a trip to either Walt Disney World or Disneyland for themselves and up to three family members. They’ll also get sent to Disney World in December for training. That said, the competition is stiff, with thousands of applications coming in every year for only a few positions. Think you’ve got what it takes? Applicants are required to be 18 years of age or older and have visited either Walt Disney World or Disneyland in the last 12 months. Those applying to specialize in Disney Cruise Line or Disney Vacation Club must have traveled in the last 24 months. Applications open on September 5 at noon EDT, and close not long after, on September 12 at noon EDT. Check your eligibility on the Disney Parks Moms Panel <a href="https://disneyparksmomspanel.disney.go.com/recruiting/eligibility-requirements">website.</a><a href="https://disneyparksmomspanel.disney.go.com/recruiting/search-begins-soon">APPLY HERE.</a>

Disney is now hiring for a Dream Job

Getting paid to move might sound too good to be true. But there is a growing list of cities, states and even countries angling to do just that.


Ollolai, Italy
Located in the heart of Sardinia, with a population of about 1,500, picturesque Ollolai is suffering from the same fate as many Irish rural villages; depopulation.

But, in an effort to staunch the flow of residents moving closer to jobs in cities and towns across the country, it launched a scheme in 2018 to attract new blood to the village.

“Case a 1 euro”, or “houses for €1” is a scheme aimed at luring new residents, which allows them to buy a house for the princely sum of just €1. There is a catch, of course – the owners will have to foot the cost of renovation. It has been estimated that it would cost at least €25,000 to renovate a typical property, and you’re required to do this within three years of your move.

Unsurprisingly, the village’s scheme has attracted a lot of interest. According to Magaraggia, a law firm that advises people on how to buy, sell, and manage properties in Italy, Ollolai received 5,000 requests for its first 100 properties, while recent reports suggest that so far several dozen houses have already been sold for refurbishment.

But if you can’t find an available property in Ollolai don’t despair; the “case a 1 euro” scheme is also in operation in other parts of Italy, including Sambuca in Sicily, and Zungoli, near the Amalfi coast. You can find more information on what’s available here: www.1eurohouses.com

Candela, Italy
Also in Italy is Candela, a small town in Puglia, located in the “heel” of the country, and a short drive from the region’s beaches. Since launching its incentive scheme to attract new residents back in 2017, it has welcomed 12 new inhabitants of “all ages, nationalities and professions”.

The town, which was known as “Nap’licchie” or “little Naples” because it was so busy, now has a population of just 2,700, and so decided to offer incentives to attract new life.

It offers cash on a sliding scale to people willing to move there, ranging from more than €2,000 for families of four or five people; €1,200 for couples; and €800 for singles, as well as tax credits on expenses such as waste charges.

To qualify, you must live in the village, rent a property there, and have a salary of at least €7,500 a year. You can expect to pay less than €400 a month in rent for a four-room property in the region.

Vermont, USA
Vermont, USA: If accepted for the Remote Worker Grant Programme, you’ll get a grant of $5,000 a year over two years, to cover moving, living and working expenses, including relocation, computer software and hardware, broadband internet and access to a co-working space
You will need permission to work in the US to avail of this programme, but if you have or can get this, it’s an attractive offering.
To combat an ageing population, with about one-third of the state’s households consisting of someone aged 65 or older – and therefore try to ease the heftier tax burden in the state by sharing it among more workers – Vermont now offers a series of incentives to new residents.
Yes, last year, Vermont governor Phil Scott launched an initiative offering $10,000 to people if they would move to the state. If accepted for the Remote Worker Grant Programme, you’ll get a grant of $5,000 a year over two years, to cover moving, living and working expenses, including relocation, computer software and hardware, broadband internet and access to a co-working space.
Up and running since January 1st, the operators of the scheme say it operates on a first come first served basis. But there is a catch; you’ll need to work for a company outside of the state – hence the “remote” in the programme title – to qualify for the grant. As of end-July of this year, about 56 grants had been approved for the programme, with an average applicant age of 38.
However, if this isn’t suitable, then the state is set to launch a new scheme in January 2020. Under the New Worker Grants Program, you could qualify for assistance of up to $7,500 if you move to Vermont to work full-time for a local employer.
Antikythera, Greece
Located on the edge of the Aegean Sea, between Crete and the Peloponnese, this idyllic Greek island could become your home.
At just 20 square kilometres (think Inis Mór, which is 31 sq km) this island is home to about 24 people today, but is desperately looking for new inhabitants.
It has launched a repopulation campaign to find new people – ideally families – to come and live there. While priority will be given to Greeks, it is also open to foreigners, and offers a monthly cheque of €500 for the first three years of residence, to those chosen for the scheme. In addition, the chosen few will also be offered a house, as well as some land, to start farming on.
But a move to the island may be best suited to those at home with island life; with just one shop, no ATM, and a two-hour ferry trip to the nearest “metropolis” of Crete, it’s not for those who crave the hoi polloi.
Alaska, USA
It’s not quite the same thing as being paid to move somewhere, but if you opt to set up home in Alaska, the US’s most northerly state, then you will soon find yourself eligible to get money from the government.
Yes, after just one entire calendar year as a resident of the state, you will find yourself eligible for the Permanent Fund dividend, which was set up back in 1976 to reward residents with proceeds from the state’s lucrative oil and gas industry.
And it’s not insignificant; last year for example, residents received $1,600 out of a $1 billion fund just for living there. The dividend peaked in 2000, at almost $2,000, but this year the legislature voted to take a portion of the fund to pay for state services.
Ponga, Spain
Just like villages and small towns right across Europe – just like our own Arranmore, which is hoping to attract new residents by pitching itself as a digital hub – Spain’s Ponga, a tiny village in Asturias, is suffering from de-population.
With less than 800 people now living in this northwestern village, with Oviedo one of the nearest big towns, this village is paying people to move there.
It is offering young couples €3,000 to move there – and you’ll get an extra €3,000 for every child you have while you’re there. You will need to commit to staying in the village for five years however, but can expect a cheap standard of living once there.
According to Numbeo for example, a three-course meal for two people in Oviedo would set you back just €35, while a cappuccino costs just €1.39 and you’d pay just €460 a month for a three-bed apartment outside the centre.
Monti Sciaga, Switzerland
Looking for a new summer home for just one Swiss franc? Well, look no further than the Swiss mountain village of Monti Sciaga, which just this summer launched the sale of nine stone properties, known as rustici, for €0.91.
The pretty village is Italian speaking, in the canton of Tessin, with views of Lake Maggiore, and is just 70 miles from Milan (handy for flying in and out of).
Like other such schemes, purchasers of the properties will have to undertake a renovation of them, in accordance with conservation guidelines.
But the scheme hasn’t yet been given the green light – the local council is expected to sign off on the proposal this autumn.
Chile
Yes, it is a bit of a move, but if you’re a female entrepreneur looking for something a bit different, it might appeal. It could also pay off financially.
Every year, Start-Up Chile runs an accelerator event aimed at attracting female entrepreneurs to the country by offering them $25,000 (€22,400) equity free funding, as well as other perks, which include a year-long work visa as well as a complimentary co-working space.
The most recent round of funding attracted entrepreneurs from 12 countries around the world, and the next application process starts on December 3rd, 2019.Original source: <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/business/personal-finance/eight-places-that-will-pay-you-to-move-there-1.3990765">The Irish Times - Fiona Reddan</a>

8 Places that will pay you to live there

Forget those regular 9-5 jobs, how about staying in pet-friendly hotels around the world with your pooch? No, we are not talking about vacation, that&#39;s the latest lucrative job offer that you won&#39;t be able to resist! Tell me more!Without beating around the bush, here&#39;s are the details. So, Hotels.com is looking for hotel ‘canine critic’ to review pet friendly hotels. The company will also allow you to take your dog along so that you can experience the facilities provided to pets at these hotels.What do I get?The selected applicant will win vouchers for a night’s stay at 10 separate hotels. You can select your choice of hotels from any of the eligible pet-friendly hotels listed on the Hotels.com website.DETAILS ON HOW TO ENTER:WANTED: Hotel Canine CriticHotels.com is on the hunt for our first ever hotel Canine Critic to review the best pet-friendly hotels around the world. It’s now all the rage to take your furry friend on your travels, so the winning pooch (and their human) will spread their “bark” and pick ten pet-friendly hotels around the world to visit on us. So, if you have a doggie diva, ’gram a pic of your pooch, tag and follow @hotelsdotcom and #CanineCritic. Ts&amp;Cs apply. For more pet hotel inspo, check out the winning properties in the new “Best for Pets” category in our Loved By Guests awards.Terms and conditions can be found<a href="https://uk.hotels.com/hotel-deals/caninecritic/"> here. </a>Best of luck!

Dream job - You and Your Dog Can Review Pet Friendly Hotels Together

A survey by the Irish League of Credit Unions found that 55 percent of college students are skipping their lectures for paid work. What’s alarming is the figure was only at 22 percent in 2017. 
With 445 students completing the survey, it’s no surprise that 60 percent stated that working part-time was having a negative impact on their college studies, while 69 percent of students are having a hard time coping financially throughout the academic year.
A further 40 percent of all students surveyed stated that between their part-time work and college studies, they have no free time at all. 
The need to work
75 percent of all students within the survey said they needed to work during the academic year in order to manage the cost of their college tuition. 
The survey revealed that 70 percent of students worked part-time while 14 percent worked full-time. The average wage for all working students was €10.14 per hour. 
Paul Bailey, head of communications of the Irish League of Credit Unions, stated “it’s worrying to see that greater numbers are skipping lectures and sacrificing time spent on their education in order to earn some extra money”. 
Last week the Minister for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor was criticised after advising students to pay for their student accommodation using the grant they receive from SUSI. 
According to the <a href="http://www.universitytimes.ie">University Times</a>, the average student accommodation costs €800 per month which would add up to €8,000 for a 10 month college year. The maximum amount a student can receive from the SUSI grant is €6,000 for the academic year.

An alarming 55% of students are skipping college to work

Most of us have always hoped of one day getting into the audience of The Late Late Show but now could be your lucky chance.The show returns this September 6th with host Ryan Tubridy and they are now seeking audience members for the 2019-2020 season.&lt;ad&gt;&quot;Audience Games and lots of prizes up for grabs! So if you&#39;re up for the craic, extremely competitive or just want to show off on the biggest show in Ireland apply now to be a contestant.&quot;Ticket applications are now open and you can apply <a href="https://www.rte.ie/tv/audience-participation/2019/0819/1069638-the-late-late-show-2019-2020-audience-applications/">HERE</a>.Tickets are allocated through a lottery system from online application. 
All audience members must be over 18.

Audience Members Wanted For The Late Late Show

If sailing around the Croatian coastline eating food and drinking wine while getting paid sounds like your dream job, then you’re in luck! Cruise Croatia are currently hiring a ‘Taste Tester’ to hop aboard one of their brand new gourmet cruises completely free, trying out all of the food and wine experiences throughout the tour and offering their all-important feedback.The Taste Tester will be responsible for sampling all of the food and wine offered aboard the ship and across the tour’s various excursions, providing feedback to the Cruise Croatia team so they can ensure you are continuing to offer a best in class product for everyone holidaying with them.&lt;ad&gt;The exclusive opportunity pays £500 (EURO 547.45) for your time and will involve the Taste Tester heading out on the 7-night Food and Wine Cruise departing on the 10th October 2020 and of course the accommodation and full tour inclusions will be provided free of charge.Aboard the ship sumptuous breakfast and 4-course lunches, and of course local wine is provided. Plus, the wine expert Cruise Director will provide on-board wine lectures to increase your knowledge and appreciation of the splendid drink.

You don’t need to have any prior relevant experience to apply for this opportunity, simply a love for food, wine and travel. The fabulous prize includes:<ul><li>7 nights on board a luxury yacht cruise with breakfast and lunch included daily, excursions and all other tour inclusions</li><li>£500 (EURO 547.45) to say thank you</li><li>An amazing travel experience touring across the beautiful coast of Croatia and sampling the local cuisine</li><li>Visit the spectacular Krka National Park and beautiful waterfalls</li><li>Visit a selection of Croatia’s leading wineries</li><li>Try your hand at fresh oyster harvesting straight from the sea</li><li>Enjoy a traditional Croatian village dinner party</li><li>Discover Croatia’s iconic UNESCO listed cities</li><li>Food &amp; Wine welcome pack on arrival</li><li>Enjoy a traditional home-hosted farm to table cooking experience with breathtaking views near Dubrovnik</li></ul>Departure DateThe cruise will depart 10th October 2020 from Split and finish in Dubrovnik on 17th October 2020. How to EnterTo enter, all you have to do is fill out the entry form <a href="https://cruisecroatia.com/dream-job-croatia-food-wine-tester/">here</a> telling Cruise Croatia why you deserve to be given this opportunity.

Taste Tester Required For 7-Night Luxury Cruise in Croatia

<h1></h1><h2>A 16-year-old just won $3M playing in the Fortnite World Cup</h2><h1></h1><h2>More than 2 million people watched the best in the world compete for big money.</h2>Battle royale game Fortnite has become a phenomenon. The free video game from developer Epic Games has generated billions of dollars and become an obsession for gamers of all ages. That surge in popularity has brought Fortnite tournaments for eager esports gamers to watch and compete in. The biggest of them all is the Fortnite World Cup, and the one who took it all on Sunday was Kyle &quot;Bugha&quot; Giersdorf. The Fortnite World Cup Finals, with a $30 million prize pool, took place July 26 to 28 in New York City at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. <h3>Who won the Fortnite World Cup</h3>Sunday was the last day of the event and it was all about the solo tournament. Players from all across the globe who qualified in smaller tournaments competed, and it was 16-year-old Kyle &quot;Bugha&quot; Giersdorf who won the $3 million first-place prize and the title of the best Fortnite player in the world. Giersdorf started the day strong, winning the first of six games. In the next five games, he continued to place high and accumulate more eliminations, giving him the point lead. He kept the top spot throughout the day and had a commanding lead in the last game, where it seemed almost impossible for him to lose. Giersdorf was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Monday to talk about his daily routine of spending a half-hour warming up before practicing and strategizing for the day. He also explained the origins of his name &quot;Bugha,&quot; which was what his grandfather would say to him as a baby to make him laugh. Twitch tracking site Githyp estimated 1.3 million people watched the Sunday finals via the video game streaming site. On YouTube, there were half a million tuning in for the event. There were also viewers on Microsoft&#39;s streaming service Mixer, and players were ble to watch the finals while playing Fortnite thanks to a new service from Epic. Saturday was the duos tournament, and the European team of Emil &quot;Nyhrox&quot; Bergquist Pedersen and David &quot;Aqua&quot; W. took the championship, winning $3 million. The players won two of the six games giving them the most points among the 50 teams competing. <h2>What is the Fortnite World Cup</h2>Epic announced the 2019 Fortnite World Cup in June 2018. Plans were to have weekly tournaments starting in late 2018 with the finals in 2019. In March, the developer changed its plans, with qualifiers for the Fortnite World Cup starting in April.Players earned points in either single or duos weekly tournaments to qualify for the finals. Those with the highest points total were invited to the event and play for the first prize of $3 million as well as the crown of the best Fortnite player in the world. <h2>What is the tournament format</h2>In both the duos and solos event, players/teams compete in six matches. They earn points after each match based on how they placed and how many eliminations they accumulated. The player or team with the most points after the six matches is crowned the winner. Duos split a prize of $3 million, while the solos winners keep the $3 million all to themselves.<h2>Who competed in the Fortnite World Cup</h2>Epic says there were more than 40 million players who participated in the qualifying events for the Fortnite World Cup across six regions: NA East, NA West, Europe, Brazil, Asia and Oceania (Austalia and New Zealand). From those qualifiers, the field is now down to 50 duos and 100 solo players. Some of the players competing are Turner &quot;Tfue&quot; Tenney, Noah &quot;Vivid&quot; Wright and Timothy &quot;Bizzle&quot; Miller. One notable player who didn&#39;t make the cut was Tyler &quot;Ninja&quot; Blevins, who failed to qualify for the World Cup. The Fortnite YouTube channel has several profiles of players competing at the finals. There&#39;s also the Road to the World Cup Finals Part 1 and Part 2 showcasing both the well-known and lesser-known players competing this weekend. <h2>World Cup Loot</h2>Epic not only set aside $30 million for the players competing, but it also gave those watching the World Cup some free cosmetics. Fortnite players who link their YouTube accounts to their Epic account could receive YouTube Drops. Viewers had to watch the event for at least 20 minutes to receive the World Cup Spray and Red Line Wrap. Players could also receive a World Cup style outfit for the Fishstick skin if they log in to Fortnite from July 25 to 28. <h2>What is Fortnite?</h2>Fortnite is a battle royale game, which means a large number of players start a match and the last one who survives wins. Each game has 100 players landing on an island with only pickaxes equipped. They&#39;ll have to find new weapons, grenades and other items in order to survive and eliminate other players.What makes Fortnite unique is the building aspect of the game. Players can scavenge materials such as wood, metal and brick to create walls, ramps and floors to quickly build their own forts, hence the name. These structures help protect players from bullets and can provide vantage points against opponents. The best Fortnite players are not just good with a gun, but they can also build quickly to defend themselves.

Gaming as a Career - Is it Possible?

<h2>ONE OF Ireland’s biggest companies is striking a blow for better work/life balance with the introduction of two weeks ‘life leave’ for all staff.</h2>Molson Coors Brewing Company is one of Ireland’s biggest beer companies.The company owns the famous Franciscan Well Brewery in Cork and several notable brands including Coors Light and Rekorderlig.It has just launched a new employee initiative which will see staff offered access to an additional two weeks extra paid leave on an annual basis.&lt;ad&gt;Molson Coors is making the change as part of a concerted effort to support staff through major life events like moving to a new house or having children.Employees will have access to the additional leave time on top of the standard 31 days of staff holiday allowance.&lt;ad&gt;This allowance comes on top of sick pay and other arrangements like compassionate leave.Introduced part of the company’s ‘Moments that Matter’ initiative, Phil Whitehead, Managing Director UK &amp; Ireland at Molson Coors, is hopeful the scheme will enhance productivity through an improved balance between work and family.“The way we all work has changed,” Whitehead said.&lt;ad&gt;“For our people to perform at their best, we recognise they need an employer that provides flexibility and understands their personal priorities.“There are often things going on in our lives which we would normally use annual leave to sort out, but this eats into actual downtime.“We wanted to change that and give our people the ability to take care of what matters in their life without running down holiday days.”The plans come as part of a renewed effort among Irish employers to better support employees in and out of the workplace.Recruitment, training and outsourced services company the ICE Group previously switched to a four-day working week, with all employees continuing to earn five days’ pay.Are your company doing anything nice that we should hear about?Email us at info@jobalert.ie

Irish company introduces two extra weeks ‘life leave’ for staff

“A SOCIETY OF empowered workers, learners, entrepreneurs, creators, parents and carers with improved quality of life for all.”This is the vision Lúí Smyth of Basic Income Ireland says he has for this country.The organisation he is part of promotes the idea of giving every citizen in the country a weekly ‘no strings attached’ payment so that everyone has enough to live on. There would be no requirement to work and anyone who was working would still get the €192 per week payment.“The lowest you can fall within society should be a dignified existence, nobody should live in destitution, it’s not in your interest that you’re surrounded by people living in destitution. So it’s about lifting everyone up to above a certain level with an unconditional income,” Smyth told the latest episode of Ireland 2029. There have been more than 30 UBI experiments across the world in the last 50 years, and the most frequently cited now is the recent trial in Finland.Over a two-year period the government paid a random sample of unemployed people aged 25 to 58 €560 a month with no requirement to seek or accept work. Anyone who took a job continued to received the money.Participants in the trial reported their stress levels went down and because the welfare systems were less bureaucratic they had more trust in institutions, in other people and in their own future ability to work.This experiment, however, was not exactly UBI as the monthly payment was not enough to live on in Finland and it was restricted to a specific group of unemployed people rather than being paid to an entire town or country regardless of income or employment status.Nevertheless, the results from trials like this, should not be overlooked when it comes to welfare policies, according to Smyth. “There’s a few things that go wrong when you have a means-tested social welfare system; the first is the relationship between the recipient and the arbitrator is hostile one,” he explained. <blockquote>So the arbitrator comes in, whether it’s a welfare clerk or whoever it might be and they have to judge whether the person is honest and worthy and whether they’re really looking for a job or whether they’re lying.</blockquote>“People in the welfare system often end up in a kind of Kafkaesque situation where they’re navigating a system which is faceless but determined to judge them at every turn.”Smyth said most welfare systems make it difficult to maintain an incentive to work. “At the moment if you are on the dole you can earn €200 per week and if you’re offered a small part-time job for €100 a week and you took it, your dole would go down by €100 a week. Your net increase is zero,” he said.Smyth said trials in other countries have shown that giving an unconditional basic income does not make people less likely to go out and work.“People will always look for more money if there’s a way for them to get it,” he said.He added that the safety net provided by UBI could help address precarious work arrangements and give workers the economic confidence to stand up for themselves and push for better conditions. Having a basic income could also allow workers to take time out to reskill or take a chance on a new job. “The best thing we can do is empower people economically. If you have a choice between working and not working then you’re in a much stronger position regardless of what legislation says,” Smyth said. ‘Self worth through work’On the other side of the argument, Oxford University professor Ian Goldin believes promoters of UBI are “trying to excuse unemployment”. “You are paying people through UBI to stay at home and all the evidence that you see from around Europe, certainly in Ireland but also from the US in the midwest and elsewhere is that people get meaning, they get status, they get income, they get networks, they get skills, they get self-worth through work,” he said. <blockquote>I think the objective should be to give everyone meaningful work. When you pay people to stay at home, when you pay them not to work effectively, you find very high rates of alcoholism, of drug abuse, of suicide, of divorce, of what Angus Deaton, the Nobel prize winner, calls the ‘diseases of despair’, and that’s what you get in many, many communities with very, very high levels of unemployment where people aren’t supported.</blockquote>Goldin said State systems should be designed to “be a leg-up to work, not a payout to stay at home”. He also made one of the common arguments against the introduction of UBI – that it is a waste of State revenue to give rich people the same payment as those on the lowest incomes:<blockquote>Universal means universal – that means everyone gets it. Billionaires get it, people that don’t need it get it, that’s what universal means and I believe that people, as a result, will get less.</blockquote>Goldin said the only way this model becomes affordable is to give people “much lower levels of support” than they currently receive in the welfare system and this would “increase poverty and inequality”. ‘Unrealistic’In 2017 the OECD published a policy brief on basic income. It looked at what a ‘no questions asked’ government payment to everyone below retirement age could look like.Herwig Immervoll, senior economist at the OECD, told TheJournal.ie that the study examined a policy scenario where governments would spend the same overall on social transfers as they currently do, but where UBI would replace welfare payments such as unemployment benefit.“We did this exercise for four EU countries with very different social protection systems (Finland, France, Italy and UK) and on the basis of detailed household and income data,” he explained.The main findings of this study were:<ul><li>Setting basic income at a level that would prevent poverty is very expensive and difficult to finance</li><li>Even a modest basic income typically requires significant tax increases</li><li>Many financially vulnerable families would lose out as they receive more generous benefit support in the existing transfer system</li></ul>Immervoll said he believes UBI is “unrealistic as the main pillar of social protection systems”.However, he said the debate “shines a useful spotlight” on the challenges facing existing welfare systems. One concern about these systems is that they can be poorly targeted. He took Italy as an example, as the richest 20% in the country receive a much higher share of benefit spending than the poorest 20%.ExperimentsImmervoll acknowledged that a basic income could help break down the stigma attached to benefits and address the work disincentive that results from the withdrawal of welfare payments as people start employment or increase working hours. Parts of Ireland’s benefit system, according to Immervoll, are comparatively well-targeted to low income families.<blockquote>A basic income does not target the poor and some vulnerable groups may therefore lose out significantly.</blockquote>Examining the current support systems should be a priority, he said, as there are huge differences even across OECD countries when it comes to targeting mechanisms.But there are “distinct benefits” to further policy experimentation when it comes to the basic income concept. Lúí Smyth has an idea for an experiment Ireland could try. “We could give a basic income to all the residents of an island on the western seaboard. And that would be a nice contained experiment and I think there would be value to trialing it within our cultural context,” he said.Basic Income Ireland’s most recent model involves a payment of €192 per week to everyone which would replace other benefits like jobseeker and illness payments and the State pension. Child benefit would not be affected by the proposal but most tax credits and reliefs in the current system would be eliminated. The organisation claims this could be done by keeping existing income tax and PRSI rates, with changes to USC rates and bands. <blockquote>I think Ireland has form on trying out radical ideas – we introduced a smoking ban at a national level at a time when most people who had an informed view of it knew it was a good idea, but to take that step, actually running with it was a big one and it’s one that we took and it worked. And after we did it countries across the world did something similar.</blockquote>“We did the plastic bag tax, the other one we’re very proud of,” Smyth said.“Overall we can afford it, we would benefit from it and I think it’s something we could be really proud of as a country, to get the ball rolling globally.”Original Source: <a href="https://www.thejournal.ie/universal-basic-income-ireland-4734122-Jul2019/"></a><a href="https://www.thejournal.ie/universal-basic-income-ireland-4734122-Jul2019/">www.thejournal.ie</a>

Universal Basic Income in Ireland - Would it work?

ARE YOU A RED HOT EUROPEAN BOY? CALLING all gingers - Red Hot are looking for six sizzling blokes to be part of their 2020 calendar of European Boys.The brand brought out a Red Hot American Boys calendar this year, and a Red Hot British Boys version in 2018, and now they&#39;re moving on to the continent.Red Hot has previously released an American and British version.So far six flame haired lads - BK, James, Pablo, Jordan, Nicola and Dom - have been signed up, but they&#39;re looking for another half dozen to make up August to December.The lucky winners will jet to Ibiza in June to shoot the saucy calendar, featuring &quot;the hottest ginger guys from across Europe&quot;.&quot;We are looking for six more ginger guys from across Europe.&quot;This year&#39;s calendar is raising money for the Terrence Higgins Trust, which is working to end the transmission of HIV in the UK, and they&#39;ve set a £12,725 target.We are looking for 6 more ginger guys from across Europe to join BK, James, Pablo, Jordan, Nicola and Dom in the 2020 calendar. Requirements:<ul><li>Be athletic and have an awesome personality, and of course natural red hair. </li><li>Be available to shoot in Ibiza in early June.</li></ul>ABOUT RED HOTRed Hot is the brain-child of photographer Thomas Knights, a photography campaign renowned for pushing boundaries and creating dialogue in the ever-changing fashion industry while raising funds for good causes.Internationally acclaimed as a “global movement”, Red Hot began in 2013 and has since toured the world and gained unprecedented fame and recognition.In 2016 the project returned with British designer Elliott James Frieze for the ‘Red Hot II’ photography campaign, art book and exhibition that launched in Rotterdam and exhibited in Beers Gallery, London.Now in its 6th year with 6 calendars, 2 art books and a global exhibition under it’s belt, Red Hot’s mission is to ‘rebrand the ginger male stereotype’ and champion the idea we all should celebrate what makes us unique.As part of its diversity movement and global anti-bullying campaign, Red Hot has raised over £55,000 for various charities and good causes including The Diana Award and the Terrence Higgins TrustOur motto is: ‘be proud of who you are’HOW TO APPLY:To enter our &quot;Red Hot European Boys&quot; model search, submit a couple of images of yourself in the Red Hot underwear (<a href="https://www.redhot100.com/shop">available from here</a>) in a message to our <a href="https://www.instagram.com/redhot100/">Instagram page.</a>

‘Red hot’ ginger men wanted for sizzling Ibiza calendar shoot

Using bogs for cannabis farms could create jobs, says Canney Bord na Móna considering replacing turf-cutting with medicinal marijuana.Transforming Ireland’s State-owned bogs into vast cannabis farms could create “a lot of jobs”, Minister of State for Natural Resources Seán Canney has said. Bord na Móna is carrying out a feasibility study into whether the cultivation of marijuana for medical use could replace traditional turf-cutting on thousands of hectares run by the company. The initiative is part of the semi-States’ Brown to Green strategy to switch to a low-carbon, sustainable business model. It also comes after Bord Na Móna announced nearly 500 jobs will be lost in the midlands, under a plan to end peat harvesting in 45 of its 62 currently active bogs within the next six years. Both Mr Canney and Minister for Health Simon Harris have met management at the semi-State company in recent weeks to discuss the possibility that Ireland could manufacture its own medicinal cannabis supply, and also export it. In his latest remarks on the proposal, Mr Canney said medicinal cannabis “has the capacity to create a decent amount of jobs and this has real potential”. “The possibility exists that [Bord na Móna] could do it for other governments and other countries,” he added. “This could create a lot of jobs.” “I would add that this is at an early stage of development and obviously a number of regulatory approvals are required,” Mr Canney said. It is reported Bord na Móna could earmark up to 5,000 hectares of its 80,000 hectare land bank for cannabis farming. Legislation In June, Mr Harris signed into law legislation allowing people access to medical cannabis on a limited basis over the next five years. The move allows for the “compassionate access to cannabis for medical reasons” in cases where conventional treatment has failed. He expects the first drugs covered by the scheme to be available in the autumn. Asked at the time about the possibility of Bord na Móna growing cannabis to supply the products, Mr Harris said that if the Medical Cannabis Access Programme proved successful, he believed Ireland should look into growing cannabis. “Instinctively I think in the medium term this is something that would make sense for Ireland to try to have its own supply,” he said. Mr Harris has previously said as legislative change on the use of medicinal cannabis progresses in Ireland, it could bring new opportunities for Irish farmers. “Does it make sense to grow your own in Ireland rather than be dependent on importing a product?” he said last year. “I think, quite frankly, it does.”Original Source - <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/using-bogs-for-cannabis-farms-could-create-jobs-says-canney-1.3977084">The Irish Times.</a> Article written by Brian Hutton.

Using Ireland's bogs for cannabis farms could create jobs

Using bogs for cannabis farms could create jobs, says Canney
Bord na Móna considering replacing turf-cutting with medicinal marijuana.Transforming Ireland’s State-owned bogs into vast cannabis farms could create “a lot of jobs”, Minister of State for Natural Resources Seán Canney has said.

Bord na Móna is carrying out a feasibility study into whether the cultivation of marijuana for medical use could replace traditional turf-cutting on thousands of hectares run by the company.

The initiative is part of the semi-States’ Brown to Green strategy to switch to a low-carbon, sustainable business model.

It also comes after Bord Na Móna announced nearly 500 jobs will be lost in the midlands, under a plan to end peat harvesting in 45 of its 62 currently active bogs within the next six years.

Both Mr Canney and Minister for Health Simon Harris have met management at the semi-State company in recent weeks to discuss the possibility that Ireland could manufacture its own medicinal cannabis supply, and also export it.

In his latest remarks on the proposal, Mr Canney said medicinal cannabis “has the capacity to create a decent amount of jobs and this has real potential”.

“The possibility exists that [Bord na Móna] could do it for other governments and other countries,” he added. “This could create a lot of jobs.”

“I would add that this is at an early stage of development and obviously a number of regulatory approvals are required,” Mr Canney said.

It is reported Bord na Móna could earmark up to 5,000 hectares of its 80,000 hectare land bank for cannabis farming.

Legislation
In June, Mr Harris signed into law legislation allowing people access to medical cannabis on a limited basis over the next five years.

The move allows for the “compassionate access to cannabis for medical reasons” in cases where conventional treatment has failed. He expects the first drugs covered by the scheme to be available in the autumn.

Asked at the time about the possibility of Bord na Móna growing cannabis to supply the products, Mr Harris said that if the Medical Cannabis Access Programme proved successful, he believed Ireland should look into growing cannabis.

“Instinctively I think in the medium term this is something that would make sense for Ireland to try to have its own supply,” he said.

Mr Harris has previously said as legislative change on the use of medicinal cannabis progresses in Ireland, it could bring new opportunities for Irish farmers.

“Does it make sense to grow your own in Ireland rather than be dependent on importing a product?” he said last year. “I think, quite frankly, it does.” Original Source - <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/using-bogs-for-cannabis-farms-could-create-jobs-says-canney-1.3977084">The Irish Times.</a> Article written by Brian Hutton.

Here&#39;s a job any worker would be happy to pass off to a drone: imagine crawling down a ladder into the vast darkness of a 20-storey-high storage tank filled with toxic chemical fumes to spend hours searching for corrosion.More than a thousand US labourers have been killed working in confined spaces like that in the past decade.One of them was 43-year-old Clinton Miller, an AkzoNobel employee who passed out after entering a tank to retrieve a piece of rubbish at a North Carolina chemical plant last year.Oxygen levels were found to be just 11pc inside the structure, according to a federal incident report. Enter the ever-more capable drone.Big industrial companies including Dow, AT&amp;T, BASF and Royal Dutch Shell have begun assembling fleets of the flying automatons to take over their most dangerous jobs.Ascending several hundred feet in the air to inspect tanks and towers, squeezing through claustrophobic tunnels to replace a faulty part, or peering into the maw of a flame-belching smokestack - all are jobs that robots are being designed to do, companies say.&quot;We look at these tasks and say, &#39;Is there a better way that we can do this without exposing the worker to risk?&#39;&quot; said Chris Witte, manager of chemical giant BASF&#39;s Freeport, Texas, site. &quot;The answer is yes. We can send a drone in.&quot;Drones now fly every day at the Freeport plant, keeping workers off scaffolding and out of tanks. For all the talk of automation and robotics replacing human labour, the new uses of drones show how technology can cut costs for companies while dramatically reducing risk, and even saving lives. They also show why businesses are pressing hard in Washington for the ability to use drones in more situations.Inspections of gas flares at Shell&#39;s refineries used to take days, said Randy Burow, Shell&#39;s health and safety manager. To get workers close enough to the flame-spewing stacks to check the pilot light, the system had to be taken offline, then workers were hoisted in a basket several hundred feet high to the top of the stack. Now drones can complete the inspection of still-burning flares in a few hours without a worker ever leaving the ground.In 2017, 166 US workers died in confined spaces. But that number pales when compared with the 887 killed by falls, the second-biggest cause of workplace deaths after car accidents, according to Bureau of Labour Statistics data.AT&amp;T has invested in a large fleet of drones to help inspect its 65,000 phone towers in the US, which can rise as high as 1,000 feet. Working on them is especially perilous: tower climbers fall to their death at nearly 10 times the rate of construction workers. The telecom giant has used drones to eliminate 5,000 tower climbs in the past 18 months, said Art Pregler, the director of AT&amp;T&#39;s drone programme.With high-powered cameras attached, increasingly agile drones can soar to the top of a tower in minutes, float among the steel frames and zoom in for close-up inspections. Drones send images so detailed that workers on the ground can count the threads on a bolt, said Pat Dempsey, who oversees telecommunications maintenance at power utility PSEG.AT&amp;T has invested in a fleet of drones to help inspect towers&quot;The fact you don&#39;t have to make a person climb that tower, from a safety standpoint, it&#39;s a game changer.&quot;Federal safety regulators are still reviewing the 2018 incident that killed AkzoNobel&#39;s employee. The company declined to comment.Even with precautions including safety gear, air monitoring and rescue workers on standby, things can still go wrong with so-called confined-space entries by people.The scale of some of the tanks is massive, comparable to a two-inch-tall person crawling into a household water heater unit, said Billy Bardin, Dow&#39;s global technology director.Dow, one of the world&#39;s largest chemical makers, said it used robots for more than 1,000 confined-space entries in 2018, and for another 1,000 external inspections that involved high elevations, significantly cutting down on the risks to its workers. &quot;That kind of entry is one of the most potentially hazardous activities that we do,&quot; said Mr Bardin.The company&#39;s goal is to reduce the number of human entries into such confined spaces to zero by 2025. That would require developing drones that can conduct repairs and other tasks, rather than just broadcast video, according to Mr Bardin.Technology is speeding in that direction. The average commercial drone costs about $25,000 (€22,400), but the price can rise as high as $250,000, said Chuck Dorgan, sales director at German manufacturer Microdrones.&quot;I get asked by companies almost every week if we can do something that I&#39;ve never thought of doing with a drone,&quot; said Ed Hine, vice-president for operations at PrecisionHawk, another drone company.Apellix, a commercial drone startup in Jacksonville, Florida, is designing drones to paint multi-storey buildings and industrial structures - a job that now requires workers to be elevated with bucket lifts or scaffolding.&quot;Nobody wants to be at the top of a 200-foot man-lift in 98-degree southern heat painting an industrial structure,&quot; said company co-founder Jeff McCutcheon.Replacing humans can get complicated: the drones must be tethered to a paint source on the ground, batteries must be periodically recharged and windy conditions can blow paint off target.But Mr McCutcheon predicts within five years drones will allow a two-man ground-based crew to paint the exterior of a huge Walmart store in four hours instead of several days.The number of commercial drones registered with America&#39;s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) exploded in 2018 to 277,000, though that&#39;s still enough to do only a small fraction of dangerous jobs.Regulations that restrict how far, how high and where drones can fly are expected to loosen in the next few years. The FAA estimates commercial drones could triple by 2023 - and possibly increase as much as fivefold.Companies have every reason to accelerate drone use as quickly as they&#39;re allowed.&quot;Drones save us downtime, save cost, save on productivity for our maintenance personnel,&quot; said Mr Bardin, &quot;and they eliminate having to put a person in that potentially hazardous environment.&quot;<a href="https://www.msn.com/en-ie/money/news/drones-are-taking-over-some-of-the-most-dangerous-jobs-in-heavy-industry/ar-AAF0crQ?li=AA56Yk&amp;ocid=spartanntp&amp;pfr=1">Original source here.</a>

Drones are taking over some of the most dangerous jobs in heavy industry

Couples are being urged to say “I Dough” as well as “I Do” as they are urged to check if they have received their “year of marriage’ relief.A spokeswoman for Taxback.com said: “The tax experts say in the year a couple are married, both parties continue to be treated as single people for tax purposes.“However, if the tax they pay as two single people is greater than the tax payable if you were taxed as a married couple, they can claim the difference as a tax refund.“Only tax deducted in the months after marriage can qualify for a tax refund.”And the money experts have urged those who have been married within the last four years to also contact Revenue to change their status and check to see if they are entitled to a refund. Commercial Director with Taxback.com, Eileen Devereux said: “Thousands of couples throughout the country are gearing up for the big day and most will not be considering the tax implications of it.“But what we are finding is that some couples never fully get to grips with the tax ramifications of their union – even years after the nuptials have taken place.“For couples, particularly those who marry in the latter to end part of the tax year, the refund could be particularly lucrative.“A total of 85,246 couples in Ireland got married between 2015 and 2018 – if even 5% of these people never received their year of marriage relief then that’s 4,200+ couples that could be entitled to a refund. “We are also older than ever before when we say, ‘I do’. In fact, the average age of Irish couples marrying is now 34.4 years for brides and 36.4 years for grooms.“Meaning that our income in the ‘year of marriage’ is probably much higher than it was for previous generations.“So, the tax savings would potentially be greater. It’s definitely worth checking out.”For more information on marriage and taxes check out <a href="https://www.taxback.com/blog/marriage-and-tax-savings">Taxback.com.</a><a href="https://www.taxback.com/blog/marriage-and-tax-savings"></a><a href="https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/married-tax-credit-refund-ireland-18801361">Original source.</a>

Married in the last four years? You could be entitled to a tax refund

Pharmaceutical Giant MSD have recently announced the expansion of its Carlow site, generating almost 300 jobs for the region.
The global healthcare and pharmaceutical company MSD have recently announced that they will expand their Carlow facility, with a aim to open by 2022.
The announcement will result up to 300 jobs for Co.Carlow, where the company were granted permission to build a 13,000 square metre manufacturing facility.
The new facility will focus on producing vaccines and biologics and is expected to hire an additional 170 staff as well as 100 contractor staff.
The Carlow facility is one of two in the South East, with another in Co. Tipperary as well as others in Cork Dublin and Wicklow.Source <a href="https://beat102103.com/news/pharmaceutical-giant-msd-to-create-300-jobs-at-their-carlow-site/?fbclid=IwAR1qo0Y5Gs9ZnhA7J3n2AR9yRvmt-x77CtQICyIdjUiuZAWrSGRKPqrY-oY">here</a>.

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