Prison officers shared almost €15 million in allowances last year including payments for working at high-security jails, for wearing their own clothes at work, running tuck shops, and for escorting prisoners to court.
The bulk of the money – €12.36 million in total – was paid in an operational allowance, which was received by 3,167 officers as part of a pay deal.
A total of €574,000 was shared between 351 officers in an environment allowance, paid to officers working in high-security jails.
The payment, which averaged just over €1,600, was paid to staff at Portlaoise Prison and the National Violence Reduction Unit at the nearby Midlands Prison.
Four hundred officers were paid a total of €186,000 in a court escort allowance, or around €466 each, for bringing prisoners to court appearances.
A dog handling allowance was paid to seventeen officers, which combined was worth €28,000, roughly €1,700 per person.
The Irish Prison Service said it was paid to staff attached to the Canine Unit, which is used for security screening and searching for smuggled drugs, firearms, and mobile phones.
Almost €150,000 was paid out in a "driving/driver/handyman" allowance to 749 different people, according to information released under FOI.
It is paid to anybody who carries out driving duties, as well as those on court escort driving duties.
A gate allowance was paid to 20 people, and was worth a total of €55,000, or around €2,761 for each person in receipt of it.
It's paid to the prison officer who is in charge of the main gate of a jail, the Irish Prison Service said.
A tuck shop allowance worth €54,000 was shared between twenty prison officers, each of them getting an average of €2,700.
It's paid to the warder in charge of the tuck shop in each prison, who has responsibility for ensuring its smooth operation and that the books add up.
A total of 172 prison officers were paid a plain clothes allowance; it was worth €64,775, or an average of around €375.
The prison service said this was paid where an officer wore their own clothes on duty, often where they worked in an open prison where uniforms aren’t used.
Other payments included €32,945 in school allowances, €54,404 in "reception" allowances, and €187,716 in governor allowances.
Altogether, the total allowance bill for 2022 came to €14.9 million, the figures showed.
An Irish Prison Service spokesperson said allowances were paid in accordance with government rules and were fully audited biannually.
They said: "[We are] required by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to complete separate quarterly pay and pension reports. Prison staff are paid allowances that are linked to a grade or a location.
"Prisons operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As a result, prison staff are also paid unsocial and additional hours associated with their shift pattern as they are required to work night duties, weekends and public holidays."
