Some of the biggest names in Irish business are among the 66,500 companies to avail of the Government’s Covid-19 wage support scheme.
Companies such as Brown Thomas, Volkswagen Group Ireland, Wetherspoons and Kingspan are on the list published by the Revenue Commissioners of those who have availed of the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS).
It saw more than 664,000 employees having their pay subsidised, according to Revenue.
The scheme, which was introduced in late March, saw the Government step in and pay up to 85 per cent of the wages of employees in companies adversely impacted by the pandemic.
To qualify, employers had to prove that at least 25 per cent of their turnover had been wiped out by the crisis and that they were unable to fully meet normal wage costs. The scheme was designed to encourage employers to keep staff on their books despite the impact of Covid-19.
It ran until the end of August at a cost to the taxpayer of nearly €3 billion before being replaced by the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS).
Revenue said that not all employers who registered for TWSS are included on the published list, as some who registered under the programme did not receive any payment while others subsequently completed a process of “reversing out” of the scheme.
It warned that employers who are ineligible for the scheme will be required to refund all TWSS payments and make good all underpaid PRSI. Payments under the TWSS scheme were not liable to either employee or employer PRSI payments.
You can see the full list here.
