A widows' and widowers' lobby group will meet the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, Ms Coughlan, today to urge a reversal of the decision to cut social welfare entitlements.
The cutback means that a person in receipt of a widow's/widower's pension can no longer claim for unemployment benefits or claim for disability or injury benefits on top of their widow's/widower's pension.
Last night members of the National Association of Widows in Ireland met to prepare for today's meeting with the Minister.
The group's president, Ms Eileen Proctor, said they would be urging the Minister to reverse the decision to withdraw the half sickness and unemployment benefit to working widows or widowers and others in receipt of social welfare pensions. "We want to try and get the Government to make a U-turn," she said.
Mr Michael O'Halloran of the Senior Citizens' Parliament, who spoke at the meeting last night, said the Government insisted the social welfare entitlement was being taken away because it was an anomaly.
"But this is not an anomaly. The benefit has always been there. The purpose is to deal with illness and unemployment as a short-term measure. It is not a second pension," he said.
The group will meet with Ms Coughlan at 6.15 p.m.