Working Supports for People with a Disability
This page tells you about working supports for people with a disability.
Get Work Supports if you have a Disability
If you have a disability and want to start work, return to work or continue in work, there are a range of supports available to you.
Benefit of Work Estimator
You can use the Benefit of Work Estimator if you are getting disability or illness payments. This shows how income from employment may affect your social welfare payment.
Support to find a job
Employability
The Employability Services are provided by companies working on behalf of Intreo. They provide a specialist employment service for people with disabilities. Your Intreo Employment Personal Advisor can refer you to the service if you both agree you would benefit from the supports these companies offer – which includes job coaching support and in-employment support. Employability Services also provide a recruitment and job matching service for employers.
Contact your local Intreo Centre or Branch Office for more details.
Designated Disability Employment Personal Advisor
The Designated Disability Employment Personal Advisor is a local point of contact for disabled people when engaging with Intreo employment services.
List of Designated Disability Employment Personal Advisor by county
Starting or returning to work
If you have a disability and you are starting or returning to employment, you may be able to keep all or part of your existing payments.
Disability Allowance and Blind Pension
If you are getting Disability Allowance or Blind Pension, you can keep your full payment while earning up to €165 per week from employment or self-employment.
If you earn over €165 a week from work, half of your earnings between €165 and €375 are not included in the Disability Allowance or Blind Pension means test.
Any earnings from work over €375 per week are assessed as income on a euro (€1) for euro (€1) basis, that is your Disability Allowance or the Blind Pension will be reduced by a €1 for every €1 earned from employment above €375 per week.
Partial Capacity Benefit
If you are getting Invalidity Pension or you have been getting Illness Benefit for six months or more, and you want to take up work, you can apply for Partial Capacity Benefit. This scheme means that you may be able to continue to receive some additional income while working.
Please note you cannot start work until you have received written permission to do so from the department, following consideration of your Partial Capacity Benefit application.
The rate of payment you will receive, in addition to your own earnings, is based on your current Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit payment and a medical assessment. There is no risk to your benefits in undertaking this assessment. The scheme is voluntary and designed to give you an income boost in work.
The scheme has been designed so there are no limits on earnings from employment or on the number of hours you can work.
Under this scheme, you can go back to your original payment if you need to, provided you continue to satisfy your underlying claim conditions.
To find out more, get in touch with the Partial Capacity Benefit team.
Work and Access
Work and Access is a set of supports to help disabled people get a job or stay in work. The supports aim to remove or reduce barriers in the workplace for people with a disability.
Supports for Jobseekers, Employees, Self-Employed include:
- Workplace Needs Assessment, to assist in identifying the need for additional supports
- Communication Support, for interview and in work
- In-Work Support, to help you perform in your position
- Personal Reader, to assist you in work
- Work Equipment, to assist you in your job
Work and Access employer supports include:
- Workplace Needs Assessment, to assist in identifying employees need for additional supports
- Workplace Adaptation, to accommodate additional employee needs
- Disability Equality and Inclusion Training, to provide employers and organisations with access to training for staff, to gain a better awareness and understanding of disabilities in the workplace
Wage Subsidy Scheme
The Wage Subsidy Scheme provides financial support to non-public sector employers to employ people with a disability to help cover the costs of significantly adapting the job’s tasks or role. An employer can get an automatic increase in the subsidy payment rate if they hire more employees on the Wage Subsidy Scheme. An employee with a disability on the scheme has the same conditions of employment as other employees.
The work offered must be for a minimum of 15 hours per week and the subsidy is available up to 39 hours per week.
Medical Card and Free Travel Pass
Keeping your Medical Card when working:
If you are returning to full-time or part-time work, you may be able to keep your medical card. Visit the HSE website for more details.
Keeping your Free Travel Pass when working:
More information about the Free Travel (Pass) Scheme is available here.
WorkAbility: Inclusive Pathways to Employment Programme
The WorkAbility: Inclusive Pathways to Employment Programme funds local, regional and national projects who provide progressive pathways into employment (including self-employment) through education, training, skills development, and in-work supports for disabled people based on their needs, their abilities and their potential.
Support for graduates with disabilities
The Department of Social Protection funds the Association for Higher Education Access and Disability (AHEAD) to deliver the Willing Able Mentoring (WAM) programme and the ‘Get Ahead’ programme for third-level students and graduates with disabilities.
WAM is a work placement programme that helps graduates with disabilities get employment. Find out more about the WAM programme here.