SURVIVORS of Magdalene Laundries will receive their first compensation payments before Christmas, the Irish Government has announced.
Justice Minister Alan Shatter revealed that some of those who have already applied, many from Britain, to the redress scheme will receive payouts from next month.
Survivors will receive up to €100,000 in compensation, with the payment increasing depending on how long they spent in a Laundry.
The Magdalene Survivors Together Group said its concerns about the size of some payments have been ignored.
"The women aren't being listened to, the Government have let them down," a spokesman for the group said.
The group said it wanted a guarantee of at least €50,000 for each woman ever sent to a laundry.
It represents 100 women in Ireland and is aware of another 67 survivors in the UK but based on the Government figures there are approximately another 400 women to be compensated and not being represented.
The average time women from Magdalene Survivors Together spent in a laundry was five to eight years.
The money will be paid to those forced into the Catholic-run workhouses, St Mary’s Training Centre, Stanhope Street in Dublin and the House of Mercy Training School, Summerhill, Wexford.
Four congregations ran them – Sisters of Our Lady of Charity, Mercy Sisters, Sisters of Charity and Good Shepherd Sisters.
