The following motion was moved by Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh on Tuesday, 11 March 2014:That Dáil Éireann: noting that: — when the Government came to power 55.1 per cent of those unemployed were long term unemployed, after three years of this Government 61.4 per cent of those unemployed are now long-term unemployed; and — there has been a 25 per cent reduction in local authority staffing levels since 2011 and local authority services are therefore unable to provide adequate services across a range of areas, as evidenced by the recent delays in addressing damage caused by severe weather; considers that the new Gateway scheme: — is a work-for-benefits scheme, also known as workfare or forced labour, on which participation is not voluntary; — entails 22 months of hard labour for a very small social welfare top-up of €20 that can be all but eroded by tax; — will not enhance the employability of participants, as there is no quality training involved and there is a recruitment embargo in place on local authorities; — punishes the unemployed for being unemployed; — copperfastens the under-staffing of essential local services; and — undermines existing pay, terms and conditions for staff across the local authority sector; and calls on the Government to abandon the Gateway scheme and instead explore the introduction of an alternative activation programme based on a training-intensive Community Employment scheme type model for a local authority context or temporary work experience opportunities on the basis of equal pay for equal work done.

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