IMPACT members who retired from the cleansing departments of Limerick city and county councils, and who have not had overtime included in the calculation of their pensions, are set to receive a €1,000 interim payment, probably before Christmas.

The HR department of the now-unified council agreed to the payment on foot of a union claim. It conceded that it will take some time to work out, on a case-by-case basis, what its retired workers may be due following incorrect pension calculations.

A review of a backlog of cases is currently underway. In the meantime, an interim payment of €1,000 will go to every pensioner who has been identified as having an entitlement to have overtime included in their pension. The payments will be credited against any final pension calculation.

IMPACT official Mike McNamara said: “This is good news for IMPACT members who are waiting to get their full pension benefits. The union has accepted that it will take time to work out what affected members are owed, but we were determined to achieve a goodwill gesture in the meantime.”