Fine Gael TD Martin Heydon has said that a change to the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) will be made to accommodate the salaries of those apprentices who were engaged in a period of block release training in February of this year.
“Many apprentices, while maintaining their employment relationship, were temporarily off the payroll of their employer on 29 February (a key condition for eligibility for the TWSS) while on block release for class-based training. As a result, their wages are not included in the calculation of the employer subsidy.
“This week Minister Paschal Donohoe confirmed that the terms of the TWSS will be amended so that employers will be able to avail of the scheme for apprentices in the above category. Revenue will undertake a manual exercise to calculate the average net weekly pay for each of these employees to determine the TWSS amount.
“The changes will apply from 26 March 2020, the date of return to employment or the date the employer was registered for the scheme, whichever is the latest.