Deirdre O'Shaughnessy speaks to Charlie Currie, Co-ordinator of Galway City Partnership's Services to the Unemployed programme, about how the low paid can keep their heads above water during a pay freeze.

With official confirmation coming last Thursday that Ireland is in recession, there has been increasing talk of unemployment and poverty. However, a group that is rarely acknowledged when things are bad is the 'working poor': those who do not feature in the unemployment statistics but may be seen as 'lucky' to remain in employment.

The most recent available figures (from 2006, at the height of the boom's second wind) show 6.9 per cent consistent poverty. The EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions from that year also show that those living in lone-parent households or where the head of household is unemployment were most likely to be at risk from consistent poverty.

However, working families are now facing one of the biggest threats in years: prices are going up but wages are not. With a pay freeze looking likely for most employees and inflation almost certainly due to go up because of madly fluctuating oil prices and the premium price of credit, things look grim for the lower-paid.

And that's where the Galway City Partnership has stepped in. The Partnership has long been working with the unemployed, but has recently identified a need for support of the low paid.

According to Charlie Currie, co-ordinator of the Partnership's Services to the Unemployed scheme; "Because of the contraction in the construction industry, both Irish and non-national workers who wish to remain here because they have strong ties, kids in school, or married to an Irish person, will have to upskill or reskill. It's going to be between two and five years before there is an upturn in the construction industry so they will need to retrain."

Unfortunately though, workers who were being paid a premium for construction-related skills may now find themselves earning minimum wage in the service sector. While these people have acted responsibly in remaining in the workforce and retraining, they will often, through no fault of their own, find themselves worse off than before.

However, there is a solution. The Galway City Partnership is currently running an awareness campaign on Family Income Supplement (FIS), a little-known welfare payment, taken up by just 30 per cent of those who are entitled to it.

Family Income Supplement is a weekly tax-free payment for families on low pay. Galway City Partnership estimates that, on average, lower paid workers could be entitled to an extra €50 to €150 per week, depending on their circumstances.

"The Partnership recognised our responsibility to ensure that people remain employed or move into new employment, but take-up of FIS is only 30 per cent of what it should be. So 70 per cent of people on lower incomes are not availing of it."

According to Charlie, employers have a key role to play in ensuring their employees take up this payment if they are entitled to it.