Hundreds of prison officers in the State's jails have been disciplined for abusing sick-leave rules following a management crackdown.
The Irish Prison Service has launched dismissal proceedings against "a number of officers", according to papers produced yesterday by Minister for Finance Brian Cowen to the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee.
More than 10 per cent of the 3,000 officers employed in Irish jails were reprimanded in some fashion for sick-leave abuses last year.
Ninety-six officers were given "general warnings" about their sick-leave habits, while a further 85 received "severe warnings".
More than 142 prison officers are currently out of work on unpaid sick leave because of the management's refusal to accept the truthfulness of their medical claims, while 40 more cannot take sick leave unless it is first approved by a doctor.
The management crackdown is "expected to result in a significant reduction in sick leave", Mr Cowen's note reveals.
Top officials have recently begun "targeting the most serious cases in each institution", while existing rules are being overhauled.
Warning that prison management enjoy "a range of tools" to stop absenteeism, Mr Cowen said pay rises can be stopped and officers could be dismissed or forced to retire early.
"A review of the higher absence cases across all prisons has been undertaken in the past 12 months and these cases have been reviewed by management on an individual basis," the Minister's report to PAC declared.
"Management systems for addressing the problem cases are under review so that appropriate staff support as well as control measures can be systematically applied across the prison system," it added.
Officers could also face the loss of uncertified sick-leave privileges - where staff can go sick for two days without getting a doctor's note - for a year, and in some cases they could lose the right to claim sick leave even when backed up by a doctor's letter.
Over 900 cases were reviewed by Prison Service management last year, which has now employed a psychologist to provide support where necessary.
Meanwhile, the number of sick days taken by civilian staff employed by the Department of Defence in the State's Army barracks has been cut sharply, from 24 in 2003 to just 20 days in 2004.
All civilian employees hired for building maintenance work are now required to fill in daily work sheets as part of a deal agreed with the trade unions under the Sustaining Progress social partnership.