Gardaí pressured to ‘work while sick’

Gardaí are being “hammered” by new laws which have led to a massive 42% cut in the cost of Garda sick leave.

Officers are reportedly coming into work sick, on crutches or seriously ill, and are failing to meet payments on financial loans because of the system, according to garda representatives.

Official figures show the cost of sick leave for gardaí fell from €22.9m in 2013 to €13.2m in 2014.