Social Welfare Act, 1986
Weekly rate of maternity allowance. |
11.—(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended by— | |
(a) the substitution for section 26A (1) (inserted by the No. 2 Act of 1985) of the following subsection: | ||
“(1) Subject to subsection (2), the weekly rate of maternity allowance as specified in column (2) of Part I of the Second Schedule shall be increased by the appropriate amount set out in column (4), (4a), (5) or (5a) of Part I of the Second Schedule in respect of each qualified child who normally resides with the beneficiary.”, and | ||
(b) the insertion after section 26A of the following section: | ||
“Weekly rate of maternity allowance. | ||
26B. (1) The weekly rate of maternity allowance payable to a woman entitled to maternity allowance under section 24 (2) (a) (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981 ) shall be an amount equal to— | ||
(a) the amount (as increased under section 26A) payable under section 26, or | ||
(b) the amount payable under this section, | ||
whichever is the greater. | ||
(2) The amount of maternity allowance payable under this section shall be an amount equal to— | ||
(a) 70 per cent. of the reckonable weekly earnings of the woman to whom the allowance is payable in the income tax year prescribed for the purposes of this section, or | ||
(b) 70 per cent. of such amount as may be prescribed as the average reckonable weekly earnings of women in that year, | ||
whichever is the greater. | ||
(3) The percentage specified in subsection (2) may be varied by regulations having regard to such matters as— | ||
(a) movements in the annual average earnings of women, and | ||
(b) the imposition or variation of statutory deductions from or charges on earnings. | ||
(4) In this section ‘reckonable weekly earnings’ has the meaning specified in section 71.”. | ||
(2) Section 3 (4) (a) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by— | ||
(a) the deletion of “75 (2),” (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981 ), and | ||
(b) the insertion after “19 (4),” of “26B,”. | ||
(3) Section 75 (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981 ) of the Principal Act is hereby repealed. | ||
(4) Section 72 of the Principal Act is hereby amended— | ||
(a) by the substitution in subsection (1) (a) (inserted by the Social Welfare Act, 1983 ) for “maternity allowance” of “maternity allowance payable under section 24 (2) (b)”, and | ||
(b) by the substitution in subsection (2) (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981 ) for “maternity allowance” in each place where those words appear, of “maternity allowance under section 24 (2) (b)”. | ||
(5) Section 74 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (2) (inserted by the Social Welfare Act, 1983 ) of the following subsection: | ||
“(3) For the purposes of this section, any day in respect of which a person is entitled to maternity allowance under section 24 (2) (a) shall be deemed to be a day of incapacity for work in respect of which the person was entitled to pay-related benefit and any day in respect of which a person is entitled to maternity allowance under section 24 (2) (b) shall be treated as a day of incapacity for work.”. |