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Defence Forces

LÉ Eithne crew 'not being paid properly' for Mediterranean mission

Crew members are entitled to a higher daily allowance, according to an association representing personnel.

Updated at 8.50pm

THE CREW OF the LÉ Eithne is not being paid the allowances it is entitled to, an association representing Naval Service personnel has said.

The Permanent Defence Forces Other Ranks’ Representative Association (PDFORRA) is calling on the Department of Defence to increase the daily support allowance it pays crew members engaged in rescue work in the Mediterranean.

Naval Service personnel are currently entitled to a tax-exempt allowance of €76 per day for armed operations and €55 per day for unarmed operations.

LÉ Eithne crew members have been paid the standard allowance for unarmed missions since the vessel was deployed.

Rejected application

The general secretary of PDFORRA, Gerry Rooney, told TheJournal.ie that the Department of Defence rejected its initial request that personnel be paid the higher rate for armed operations.

Crew should be entitled to the higher allowance as the ship itself is armed, he said.

The Naval Service and the crew of the LÉ Eithne are conducting their duties in an extremely professional manner. It involves a great deal of commitment in quite unprecedented circumstances.

Rooney said he was surprised that the gulf between the two sides was so large and that the PDFORRA received no offer on its second request for an allowance increase.

The association has now requested that the matter be adjudicated by an independent third party, he told TheJournal.ie.

19239312801_dc3a22df9f_z Defence Forces Defence Forces

The Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, which represents senior-ranked officers, has also requested additional payments for its members.

Naval service officers are entitled to an overseas peace support allowance of up to €102 per day for armed missions and up to €80 per day for non-armed missions.

Conciliation

The LÉ Eithne crew has saved nearly 3,400 migrants since it began search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean just under two months ago.

In a statement, the Department of Defence said the claims made by both associations are currently being processed through its conciliation and arbitration scheme.

“As such matters are confidential to that process, it would be inappropriate for the Minister to make any public comment on these pay claims,” it said.

Read: ‘The Mediterranean will become Europe’s graveyard’ >

Read: LÉ Eithne to be recalled from Mediterranean in a month’s time >

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48 Comments
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    Mute Kevin Higgins
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:30 PM

    Any job position that involves weeks away under such stressful conditions deserves full pay and respect.

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    Mute Beano
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:31 PM

    If you have an issue with having to spend weeks away then don’t join the navy

    257
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    Mute Angry Squirrel
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:34 PM

    Typical Irish looking after everyone else accept our own. Give the bloody crew what they are entitled too they are doing us proud they deserve better. Cheapskate government. They are well able to give themselves a pay increase the leaches.

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    Mute James Mc Loughlin
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:01 PM

    who is paying for this ship been used in this manner.is it the UN or theEU.and if so they should pay the crews the propper rates for been overseas.there is no problim giving retired polititions with big pensions giving them more money..

    107
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    Mute Ryan Anthony
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:06 PM

    What a great recruitment campaign that would make Beano.

    “Spend weeks away from home in a job that might get you drowned, shot, stabbed, strangled, killed contracting some disease…but don’t expect any hazard pay, just beat yourself with a stick and be glad to serve Ireland!”

    131
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    Mute Beano
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:16 PM

    You’re more likely to be shot, stabbed, strangled or contract a disease on a Saturday night in Dublin than you are sailing around the Med picking up scared, weak refugees.

    73
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    Mute Ryan Anthony
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:19 PM

    The meds not their only job they board ships with drug traffickers and terrorists on board and not all these refuges are scared women and kids, and yeh, many of them have very infectious diseases which is why they are dressed like that ^ when helping them You are extremely unlikely to get shot anywhere in Ireland let alone Dublin.

    83
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    Mute Larry L'Oiseau
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    Jul 8th 2015, 8:33 PM

    Catherine,
    They ‘rescued’ migrants, which is little different to ‘saving’ them.

    28
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    Mute gkrell
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    Jul 8th 2015, 9:42 PM

    They aren’t doing us proud. The are enabling the migration racket and making African smugglers and the Italian mafia very rich and swamping Europe with economic migrants it is very difficult to get rid of. They would be doing is proud if they dragged the boats back to the nearest beach on the African coast.

    79
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    Mute Oisin Murray
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    Jul 8th 2015, 10:45 PM

    Pontius, you are a piece of dirt. A yellow bellied coward, hiding behind a pseudonym and a keyboard and clearly has no life but to spend hours commenting and trolling on journal.ie. you are a sad man and could never do what these guys do or even catch syphilis as that would require contact with a real woman, or man…

    47
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    Mute Ross O'Callaghan
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    Jul 9th 2015, 12:02 AM

    More or less described a Garda’s life there to be honest..and there’s no hazard pay in that…

    16
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    Mute Eamon Mac Gowan
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    Jul 9th 2015, 1:15 AM

    @Oisin Murray,
    Calm down will you, no need to get so excited.

    6
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    Mute James Delaney
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    Jul 9th 2015, 4:01 AM

    Tge,Garda get enough allowances – which are out-dated & should be done away with.

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    Mute Gus Sheridan
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    Aug 6th 2015, 1:18 PM

    Pontius is that remark from personal experience?

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    Mute BERTIE
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:28 PM

    Surprise surprise, suppose it’s ok as long as Cowen and Aherne get their top ups

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    Mute Charles Coughlan
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    Jul 8th 2015, 8:34 PM

    Saved me making the exact same comment.
    RTE radio earlier in the week stated that they would be getting the same allowance as our peace keeping forces in the Lebanon

    69
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    Mute Jack Dunne
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    Jul 8th 2015, 9:20 PM

    Armed operations does not include the ship alone being armed!! The crew need be armed for this 76 amount otherwise its just another junket

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    Mute John Payne
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:38 PM

    It’s a tough call to make really. The ship and crew are taking part in a humanitarian mission where technically there are no armed threats facing them. It would be different if they were conducting Maritime Interdiction operations where armed boarding of suspect vessels were taking place.

    If the crew receives the higher allowance then in theory they should receive it every time they set sail and there are weapons on board.

    Btw, former military with prior operational tours here.

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    Mute Angry Squirrel
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:48 PM

    Ah come on john they are on operations in a foreign land they deserve the extra pittance of an allowance and should rightly get it. I myself have been a member years back, never served overseas but I can imagine it’s not easy work as you well know.

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    Mute Wayne O'Fathaigh
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:50 PM

    11 comments in and we have a sensible, calm and rational assessment! You sir have no place on the Journal :)

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    Mute Reg
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    Jul 8th 2015, 10:41 PM

    It’s already a pretty generous allowance if you ask me. Tax free and on top of their rxisting pay.

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    Mute John Payne
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    Jul 9th 2015, 9:31 PM

    Angry, I agree that they should get any allowance they are due, however the operation a warfghting one. Yes, they are working more than they would on a normal deployment but I still believe that there must remain a difference between allowances when conducting armed operations.

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    Mute littleone
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:33 PM

    Ah here. These people are doing a tremendous job and are not being paid the proper allowance of €76 a day . they are being paid €10 a day less than politicians who get paid €65 just for clocking into the dail. Now I wonder whose job is worse?

    121
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    Mute Adrian
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:36 PM

    Bet ya simon coveney is getting paid properly!

    95
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    Mute Colm K
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:15 PM

    Coveney been out banging the drum in the media about how great this mission has being going to raise his profile. Turns out his own department aren’t even paying them properly. Leaches.

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    Mute gkrell
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    Jul 8th 2015, 9:44 PM

    Surprised he wasn’t invited to the Bilderberg group this year having gone the year before. Maybe they told him he must do more work to get Arabs and Africans into Europe or he won’t be invited again.

    24
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    Mute Ciaran Whyte
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:58 PM

    I’ve probably missed the obvious… But as they are rescuing refugees lost at sea, why would they be paid the rate for armed missions?

    59
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    Mute Tap Solny
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:05 PM

    Perhaps they have to shoot some refugees.

    23
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    Mute Duck Knight
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:35 PM

    boo effing hoo. Get a job which doesn’t contribute to the slow suicide of ireland

    41
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    Mute glenoir1
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:37 PM

    don’t quite understand ‘slow suicide’

    56
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    Mute Duck Knight
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:53 PM

    An internet commenter with poor comprehension skills… I’m shocked

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    Mute Tony Canning
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:43 PM

    Duck seems to think that every refugee picked up by the LE Eithne is delivered to Dublin.

    That or it’s just a thinly veiled anti-muslim comment.

    23
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    Mute gkrell
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    Jul 8th 2015, 9:49 PM

    Dublin, Italy it’s all the same. We have a border wide open with them. Italy does not want them anyway as they have too many and they cause too many problems so our EU overlords are redistributing them. They’re sticking 600 here and more will follow, all housed with food and medical cards. Meanwhile our own population are broke, many homeless, health services a mess and on and on.

    33
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    Mute Tony Canning
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    Jul 8th 2015, 10:07 PM

    Ah – that argument – the one that blames refugees for our government’s failures.

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    Mute gkrell
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    Jul 8th 2015, 11:22 PM

    I’m blaming the government for bringing more failure here, not the immigrants. They’re just looking out for themselves. I want those responsible for looking for the Irish to do what they were elected to do.

    21
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    Mute Stephen Foster
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:37 PM

    Is it me or are they getting paid really low wages? €55 per day? Ok it’s not being taxed but still.

    29
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    Mute Caoimhin
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:42 PM

    No it’s not low pay, this allowance is on top of the salary. It’s works out very nice if your away for six months at a time like the army do regularly

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    Mute Ros Aodha
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    Jul 8th 2015, 6:59 PM

    if you can get on a rotation that is. with only about 500 a year going overseas that’s not easy to do.

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    Mute Beano
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:02 PM

    But why is there even an allowance for this? It would be the equivalent of a doctor having a basic pay then getting an allowance for each time they treat people or a teacher getting an allowance for correcting tests. It’s their job

    44
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    Mute littleone
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:07 PM

    Then you would have to ask is why do politicians get a clocking in allowance of €65 a day . it’s their job also.

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    Mute Beano
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:13 PM

    Politicians shouldn’t get it either

    50
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    Mute Stephen Foster
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    Jul 8th 2015, 8:01 PM

    Ah ok thanks for clearing that up Caoimhin.

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    Mute Lazlo Saint Pierre
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    Jul 8th 2015, 11:54 PM

    I have re-read this a few times and still don’t see what the problem is here. They are being paid the un-armed allowance for an un-armed mission so whats all the fuss about. If there is a story here it’s more about the sense of entitlement that civil servants in this country have and how they believe that if they have a problem with something then its an opportunity to create another expense or allowance. It might be relatively small change to the state as a whole but it all adds up and its been bleeding this nation dry for years. The writer of this article has left me with many questions that reallly should have been addressed in the article.Relevant questions might be what is the basic wage of the various ranks on board LE E, how many crew are on the LE E, how long are they to serve in the Med mission, is the mission EU or UN or other subsidised, is the LE E ever unarmed (ie does it ever sail without any arms at all), were the crew told to report for this mission or did crew members volunteer for the mission, do they get shore leave and free time in Italy, what other allowances are they able to claim, do they get their meals for free, uniform for free, laundry allowance and so on.

    As for this joke about TD’s getting E65 for clocking in, it is a joke isn’t it. I refuse to believe that on a list somwhere in Leinster House it says “Clocking In Allowance – E65″. No way, I don’t buy it. That can’t be true.

    19
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    Mute HRH The Brummie
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    Jul 8th 2015, 7:34 PM

    OMG money for nothing and when they’re sitting on their area doing nothing as they are for most of their career does the tax payer get money back…. lazy *ucks.

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    Mute Ros Aodha
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    Jul 8th 2015, 9:53 PM

    Typical bs. What would you know?

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    Mute Mickymac
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    Jul 8th 2015, 10:46 PM

    Typical dad’s army looking money for nothing

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    Mute Colm Flaherty
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    Jul 9th 2015, 8:43 AM

    PDFORRA, come on. If that were the case than every military task that involved firearms would constitute a higher rate. If the Navy were in danger of attack like, say, a US Navy vessel off the coast of Iran, I’d back it, but our sailors were not using their weapons in their primary task of rescuing migrants.

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    Mute Buster VL
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    Aug 29th 2016, 10:12 PM

    Best thing then is for the etien to return home.

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