The Employment and Support Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016

Exempt work

39.—(1) the categories of work referred to in regulation 37(2)(f) are—

(a) work for which the total earnings in any week does not exceed £20;

(b) work for which the total earnings in any week does not exceed 16 times the national living wage, subject to paragraph (4), and which—

(i) is part of the claimant’s treatment programme and is done under medical supervision while the claimant is an in-patient, or is regularly attending as an out-patient, of a hospital or similar institution, or

(ii) is supervised by a person employed by a public authority or by a voluntary organisation or community interest company engaged in the provision or procurement of work for persons who have disabilities;

(c) work which is done for less than 16 hours a week, for which total earnings in any week does not exceed 16 times the national living wage, subject to paragraph (4), and which is done—

(i) during a work period, provided that paragraph (7) applies, or

(ii) by a claimant who has or is treated as having limited capability for work-related activity;

(d) work done in the course of receiving assistance in pursuing self-employed earner’s employment whilst participating in a programme provided, or in other arrangements made, under section 1 of the Employment and Training Act(1);

(e) work done where the claimant receives no payment of earnings and where the claimant is—

(i) engaged by a charity or voluntary organisation, or

(ii) a volunteer,

and where the Department is satisfied in either of those cases that it is reasonable for the claimant to do the work free of charge;

(f) work done in the course of participating in a work placement approved in writing by the Department for Employment and Learning (or a person providing services to that Department) before the placement starts.

(2) The number of hours for which a claimant is engaged in work is to be determined—

(a) where no recognisable cycle has been established in respect of a claimant’s work, by reference to the number of hours or, where those hours are likely to fluctuate, the average of the hours, which the claimant is expected to work in a week;

(b) where the number of hours for which the claimant is engaged fluctuate, by reference to the average of hours worked over—

(i) if there is a recognisable cycle of work, the period of one complete cycle (including, where the cycle involves periods in which the claimant does no work, those periods but disregarding any other absences),

(ii) in any other case, the period of 5 weeks immediately before the date of claim or the date on which a superseding decision is made under Article 11 of the 1998 Order(2) (decisions superseding earlier decisions), or such other length of time as may, in the particular case, enable the claimant’s average hours of work to be determined more accurately.

(3) For the purposes of determining the number of hours for which a claimant is engaged in work, that number is to include any time allowed to that claimant by the claimant’s employer for a meal or for refreshment, but only where that claimant is, or expects to be, paid earnings in respect of that time.

(4) Where the amount determined by the calculation in paragraph (1)(b) or (c) would, but for this paragraph, include an amount of—

(a) less than 50p, that amount is to be rounded up to the nearest 50p; or

(b) less than £1 but more than 50p, that amount is to be rounded up to the nearest £1.

(5) Part 10 applies for the purposes of calculating any income which consists of earnings under this regulation.

(6) In this regulation—

“relevant benefit” means—

(a)

an employment and support allowance; or

(b)

credits under regulations made under section 22(5) of the Contributions and Benefits Act(3),

in respect of which the question of the claimant’s limited capability for work arises under the Act;

“volunteer” means a person who is engaged in voluntary work otherwise than for a relative, where the only payment received or due to be paid to the person by virtue of being so engaged is in respect of any expenses reasonably incurred by the person in connection with that work;

“work period” means a period which begins on the first day on which any work referred to in paragraph (1)(c) is undertaken and continues for a period of 52 weeks, whether or not any further work referred to in paragraph (1)(c) is undertaken during that period;

“work placement” means practical work experience with an employer, which is neither paid nor undertaken in expectation of payment.

(7) This paragraph applies where—

(a) the claimant has not previously done any work under paragraph (1)(c);

(b) since the beginning of the last work period, the claimant has ceased to be entitled to a relevant benefit for a continuous period exceeding 12 weeks; or

(c) not less than 52 weeks have elapsed since the last work period.

(1)

Section 1 was amended by Article 3 of the Employment and Training (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 (S.I. 1988/1087 (N.I. 10)) and Article 5 of the Industrial Training (Northern Ireland) Order 1990 (S.I. 1990/1200 (N.I. 8))

(2)

Article 11 was amended by paragraph 17 of Schedule 6 and Schedule 9 to the Social Security Contributions (Transfer of Functions, etc.) (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/671)

(3)

Section 22(5) was amended by paragraph 5 of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995, paragraph 3(3)(b) of Schedule 3 to the Welfare Reform Act (Northern Ireland) 2007 (c.2) and paragraph 2 of Schedule 3, and Schedule 12, to the Welfare Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 2015