The Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016

Earnings of employed earners N.I.

58.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (4), “ earnings” means in the case of employment as an employed earner, any remuneration or profit derived from that employment and includes—

(a) any bonus or commission;

(b) any compensation payment;

(c) any holiday pay except any payable more than 4 weeks after the termination or interruption of employment but this exception does not apply to a person who is, or would be, prevented from being entitled to a jobseeker's allowance by Article 16 of the Order (trade disputes);

(d) any payment by way of a retainer;

(e) any payment made by the claimant's employer in respect of expenses not wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of the duties of the employment, including any payment made by the claimant's employer in respect of—

(i) travelling expenses incurred by the claimant between their home and place of employment;

(ii) expenses incurred by the claimant under arrangements made for the care of a member of their family owing to the claimant's absence from home;

(f) any payment or award of compensation made under Articles 146(4), 147, 151(3)(a), 163, 166 or 167 M1 of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (the remedies: orders and compensation, the orders, enforcement of order and compensation, interim relief);

(g) any payment made or remuneration paid under Article 60, 66, 96, 100 or 102 of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (right to guarantee payments, remuneration on suspension on medical or maternity grounds, complaints to employment tribunals) M2 ;

(h) any award of compensation made under Article 154(1), 156(3), 163 to 167, 217 or 220 of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (compensation for unfair dismissal, interim relief, complaint and protective award, complaint by employee to industrial tribunal) M3 ;

(i) any payment made under legislation of, or under any scheme operating in, the Republic of Ireland which is analogous to any income to which sub-paragraphs (a) to (h) relate;

(j) the amount of any payment by way of a non-cash voucher which has been taken into account in the computation of a person's earnings in accordance with Part 5 of Schedule 3 to the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001.

(2) “Earnings” does not include—

(a) subject to paragraph (3), any payment in kind;

(b) any periodic sum paid to a claimant on account of the termination of their employment by reason of redundancy;

(c) any remuneration paid by or on behalf of an employer to the claimant in respect of a period throughout which the claimant is on maternity leave, paternity leave, shared parental leave[F1 , parental bereavement leave] or adoption leave or is absent from work because they are ill;

(d) any payment in respect of expenses wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred in the performance of the duties of the employment;

(e) any occupational pension;

(f) any redundancy payment within the meaning of Article 170(1) of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996;

(g) any lump sum payment made under the Iron and Steel Re-adaptation Benefits Scheme M4 ;

(h) any payment in respect of expenses arising out of the claimant's participation as a service user;

(i) any bounty paid at intervals of at least one year and derived from employment to which paragraph 6 of the Schedule to these Regulations (sums to be disregarded in the calculation of earnings) applies.

(3) Paragraph (2)(a) does not apply in respect of any non-cash voucher referred to in paragraph (1)(j).

(4) In this regulation, “compensation payment” means any payment made in respect of the termination of employment other than—

(a) any remuneration or emolument (whether in money or in kind) which accrued in the period before the termination;

(b) any holiday pay;

(c) any payment specified in paragraphs (1)(f), (g) or (h) or (2);

(d) any refund of contributions to which the person was entitled under an occupational pension scheme.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 58(2)(c) inserted (2.4.2023) by The Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay (Consequential Amendments to Subordinate Legislation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2023 (S.R. 2023/56), regs. 1(1), 25(4), 34

Marginal Citations

M1 Articles 146(4) and 151(3)(a) were amended by paragraph 2 of Schedule 5 to the Employment (Northern Ireland) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/2902 (N.I. 15)) and Article 163 was amended by regulation 32(6) of S.R.1998 No. 386, Article 13 of the Public Interest Disclosure (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 (S.I. 1998/1763 (N.I. 17)), Article 8 of the Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/2790 (N.I. 9)) and paragraph 15 of Schedule 2 to the Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 2004 (S.I. 2004/3078 (N.I. 19))

M2 Article 96 was amended by paragraph 2 of Schedule 10 to S.R. 2000 No. 375

M3 Article 154(1) was amended by regulation 32(6) of S.R. 1998 No. 386 and the Schedule to S.R. 2011 No. 30, Article 156(3) was amended by regulation 32(6) of S.R. 1998 No. 386, Article 164 was amended by regulation 32(6) of S.R. 1998 No. 386 and Article 8 of the Employment Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/2790 (N.I. 9)) and Article 217 was amended by regulation 10 of S.R. 1999 No. 432

M4 The Scheme is set out in regulation 4 of, and the Schedule to, the European Communities (Iron and Steel Employees Re-adaptation Benefits Scheme) (No.2) Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/3182)