THE ESB has said that neither executives nor other staff get free electricity from the State company but all full-time employees are entitled to a discount.
It was responding to allegations in the Dáil yesterday by Fine Gael energy spokesman Leo Varadkar that the ESB was giving “free electricity” to employees at a time when it was disconnecting thousands of customers who couldn’t meet their bill payments this year.
“While the ESB is cutting off power to vulnerable people, who cannot pay their bills, it is giving free electricity units to senior managers and executives and retired executives,” the Fine Gael TD claimed.
According to an ESB spokesman, every full-time member of staff is entitled to a 55 per cent discount on the 1,000 units on the bill they receive from the company every two months.
On the basis that an average household uses about 1,000 units every two months, and the day-time rate is 15.06 cent a unit, this means that the average staff discounted ESB bill comes to just over €82 every two months, compared with €150 for everyone else.
However, bills also include standing charges and a public service levy, and the company also offers nightsaver rates.
In addition, larger families and households are likely to use more electricity than smaller ones.
The spokesman pointed out that the discount applies across the board in the company and added that staff have to apply for it. The scheme has been in place since 1981.
“Every company offers some kind of discount or concession to their staff,” the electricity board’s spokesman said.
Mr Varadkar criticised the company policy, describing it as horrific that discounts were offered to ESB staff while the company was engaged in the practice of cutting off customers that could not meet their bill payments.
So far this year, almost 2,500 households a month – 80 a day – are having their electricity supply disconnected for non-payment of bills to energy companies.
The ESB has disconnected about 7,000 customers so far this year.
A spokesperson for Bord Gáis, which has disconnected about 4,000 customers so far this year, was not available for comment last night.
A spokesman for Airtricity said that the company does “absolutely not” provide free or a reduced rate of electricity to any of its employees or senior management.
He said that Airtricity does not engage in the practice of offering reduced or discount electricity for their staff, which he described as “staff perks”.
Airtricity is cutting electricity to about 35 homes in Ireland each week.