The number of Donegal workers who are receiving Pandemic Unemployment payments has fallen slightly this week to 21,900.
The number is down from 22,200 on 19th May and is set to drop further next week as people returning to work in Phase 1 are taken into account.
Today, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection issued payments valued at €202.8m to 579,400 people nationwide in respect of their application for the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP). This is a reduction of 5,200 on the number of people paid at the same point last week. Included amongst this week’s recipients are 33,400 people who will be receiving their last payment as they are returning to work.
Last week, some 44,000 people nationwide closed their claim for the Pandemic Unemployment Payment of which about 35,600 reported that they were returning to work. The balance relates primarily to overlaps with the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme. Of those 35,600 returning to work, approx. 33,400 are receiving their last unemployment payment this week and are included in the 579,400 people reported above.
There is a one week lag in how closures due to people returning to work are reflected in the payment data because most of the people concerned will receive a payment tomorrow as the PUP payment is made weekly in arrears and the people concerned were unemployed in the week for which the payment is due.
The main sectors in which people are returning to work are Construction with 12,700 workers back in work. In Wholesale and Retail Trade, Repair of Motor vehicles and motorcycles, 5,500 have returned to work and 3,700 have returned to their jobs in the Manufacturing sector.
As well as those on the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment, there are now almost 56,300 employers who have registered with the Revenue Commissioners for the Temporary Covid-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) with at least one subsidy being paid in respect of over 482,800 people under that scheme.
The above payments are in addition to the 214,700 people who were reported on the Live Register as of the end of April.
All Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment payments issued will be in recipients’ bank accounts or at their local post office tomorrow, Tuesday 26th May.