Fees paid to people sitting on interview and assessment panels for public sector jobs topped €2 million in the space of a year, with two individuals earning more than €40,000 each for their work.
Figures from the publicjobs service detail how €1.32 million of the total was shared among retired civil or public sector staff in 2024.
A further €544,000 was paid to people from the private sector while semi-state employees, mostly retired, shared a total of €160,000 in fees.
There was also a small total of €13,700 for retired academics, people from the charity sector, public servants from different countries, and other miscellaneous individuals.
The overall spend in 2024 was €2.035 million, which covered interviews, shortlisting, and other assessment exercises, including the 15,803 interviews carried out that year.
Two people earned more than €40,000 for their work on interview panels, according to figures released under FOI laws.
One retired civil or public servant received €43,365 while a retired semi-state employee was paid €42,525 in fees.
There were four others who earned fees of between €30,000 and €40,000, two from the private sector, one retired public servant, and one retired semi-state worker.
Eleven others earned between €20,000 and €30,000 – many of them ex-public sector staff.
The publicjobs figures showed that fifty people received in excess of €12,350 in fees for their work sitting on interview panels in 2024.