Know Your Rights

Course Description:

Gaining knowledge and insight creates confidence and empowerment. In the world of information overload and digitisation, understanding your rights and entitlements in an easy and understandable fashion is key to exerting these rights in an assertive and calm manner.

This introductory course will provide you with an insight to the social welfare system, understanding the social welfare language and basic eligibility and criteria assessed.

The course will also cover the basics in employment rights, how to complain and where to complain. The course will provide insight to social welfare supports for families and carers of adults and children with care needs.

Understanding your pay-packets and your deduction is key to knowing you are correctly paid, so a simple guide to working out your tax is covered in this course.

At the back end of the course, we will cover shopping rights, and accessing data about you and how and where to complain to public bodies.

Finally, we will cover health supports and overcome some of the common myths of ineligibility to GP / medical cards and the benefit provided.

Class 1 covers:

An introduction to the social welfare system in Ireland

• Contribution based and means tested payments.
• Understanding the different Classes of PRSI and their eligibility
• Supplementary Welfare Allowance (minimum eligibility payment)
• Reading your PRSI records and the importance of records

Class 2 covers:

Employment Rights

• The difference between contract of employment and contract for service
• An introduction to employment rights from the commencement of work to termination of employment
• How To Complain & Redress

Class 3 covers:

Social Welfare Payments (Caring and Sickness)

• Caring Payments (Benefit and Allowance) and how assessed
• Sick Payments (Illness Benefits / Invalidity Pension and Disability Allowance)
• Domiciliary Care Allowance (payments for children with additional needs)

Class 4 covers:

How To Work out Your PAYE / Tax Credits

• Understanding tax bands and tax credits
• How to work out your Tax, PRSI & USC
• Understanding how to read a payslip.
• Tax Refunds

Class 5 covers

Consumer Rights and Accessing Your Data

• Consumer Rights
• How and where to Complain.
• Freedom of Information / Data Access
• Complaining to Public Bodies / Ombudsman

Class 6 covers:

Health Supports

• Medical / GP Cards and how to assess eligibility.
• Long Term Illness Card and benefits
• Drug Payment Scheme and threshold

Course Day & Time: Monday 7.30 – 9.00 pm

Start Date:  27/01/25

Cost: €55

Course Format: In class with tutor

Duration: 6 weeks – Maximum of 12 students in class

Equipment Needed: Please / tablet or laptop. (Note this is not Mandatory). Pen / paper & calculator

Enrolment: You can enrol online through our website www.malahidecsadulted.ie by clicking on the Easy Payments Plus button. Enrolment opens on Monday the 9th of December at 10am

Tutor: Andrew McCann

About The Presenter

Andrew McCann has worked in the area of social and civic rights and entitlements for over 20 years and advocated for the public. He has written 10 annuals titled “Know Your Rights” covering questions on all topics in a simple Q & A format. He has appeared on TV (Ireland AM / Afternoon Show) & radio (Newstalk / RTE 2 / Q102 / Highland Radio and local and regional radio stations) answering viewers and caller’s questions.

He has represented both employees and employers within reference to employment disputes at the WRC / Labour Court and has carried out independent investigations and internal appeals, as well as representing clients at social welfare appeals.

Andrew has a BA in Law specialising in Employment Law, Wills & Inheritance and Family Law. He has completed an Advanced Certificate in Employment Law at the Kings Inns, and is a qualified Mediator, with the Mediation Institute of Ireland. He is an Associate member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) and has completed a BA (Hons) in HRM Strategy, Management and Practice.

He has also recently completed a Post Graduate Certificate in Governance with the Irish Public Administration and has commenced his Masters in HR in September 2023.