Eurofound's EU PolicyWatch collates information on the responses of government and social partners to the COVID-19 crisis, the war in Ukraine, rising inflation, as well as gathering examples of company practices aimed at mitigating the social and economic impacts.
Factsheet for measure IE-2020-30/1422 – measures in Ireland
Country | Ireland , applies nationwide |
Time period | Open ended, started on 23 July 2020 |
Context | COVID-19 |
Type | Other initiatives or policies |
Category |
Promoting the economic, labour market and social recovery into a green future
– Support for spending, stimulus packages |
Author | Roisin Farelly (IRN Publishing) and Eurofound |
Measure added | 11 November 2020 (updated 02 December 2020) |
The Government’s July Jobs Stimulus package was launched on 23 July 2020 and contained a range of measures of up to €7.4 billion designed to stimulate a jobs-led recovery while living with COVID-19.
Taoiseach, Micheál Martin TD said: "The stimulus package announced today will protect existing jobs while creating new and sustainable employment options in the months and years ahead.”
Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Leo Varadkar TD said: “Today’s stimulus package is the next step in our national recovery story. It is designed to help businesses which haven’t reopened yet and those struggling to do so. We have listened to businesses and responded with a package of scale and speed to meet their most immediate needs. Our main objective is to save jobs and create new ones.”
The stimulus includes:
No information.
Workers | Businesses | Citizens |
---|---|---|
Applies to all workers | Applies to all businesses | Applies to all citizens |
Actors | Funding |
---|---|
National government
|
European Funds
National funds |
Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:
Trade unions | Employers' organisations | |
---|---|---|
Role | Consulted | Consulted |
Form | Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies | Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies |
Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
Social partners were consulted prior to publication of the stimulus.
Responding to the details of the Government’s July stimulus package, Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) general secretary, Patricia King said: “As we transition to this stimulus phase, the length and depth of the recession will be determined to a very large extent by the policy priorities unveiled today, and the devil will be in the detail.
ICTU and the trade union movement have made a substantial contribution towards shaping many of the measures implemented by the last Government to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus and to offset the consequences for households and businesses. Direct government grants to businesses, in the order of billions of €’s must be conditional on a commitment by them to decent work and to retaining their workforce. We must end the scourge of low pay and precarious work and no longer tolerate bogus self-employment that pervades the sectors hardest hit. The race to the bottom must end."
Ibec, the group that represents Irish business, strongly welcomed the July Stimulus package announced from Government today, the largest single economic stimulus in the history of the State. Ibec CEO Danny McCoy said: “On behalf of the Irish business community, today’s stimulus package of increased public spending, investment and tax supports is a welcome and important step in rebooting the economy. Government has taken on board Ibec’s extensive inputs over recent months and unveiled a comprehensive package of economic and business supports. It is imperative that the package is now delivered alongside measures that ensure as safe a return to as much economic activity as possible in the coming months. "
Citation
Eurofound (2020), July stimulus aims to assist businesses and people get back to work, measure IE-2020-30/1422 (measures in Ireland), EU PolicyWatch, Dublin, https://static.eurofound.europa.eu/covid19db/cases/IE-2020-30_1422.html
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