There’s been a 63% drop in the number of people in Kerry getting the Pandemic Unemployment Payment.
At the peak on May 5th, over 22,000 in the county were receiving the COVID-19 welfare payment; that’s down to just over 8,000 this week.
That’s according to details from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.
The €350 a week Pandemic Unemployment Payment is for employees and the self-employed who are fully out of work due to COVID-19.
This week the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection issued payments valued at €84.4 million to 262,400 people across the country, down 12,100 since last week, and a 56% drop on the 598,000 paid at its peak on May 5th.
In Kerry, 8,200 people are getting the Pandemic Unemployment Payment this week; that’s down 500 on last week, and represents a drop of 63% or 14,000 people since the peak on May 5th.
Among them are 300 people who have informed the Department they’re returning to work and have closed their payment this week, the same number as last week.
The COVID-19 Illness Benefit, also paid at a rate of €350 a week, is for people who have been medically certified to self-isolate or have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
In Kerry, 1,100 people are getting this payment this week, the same as last week.
