Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

I will respond on behalf of my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minster for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Mary Coughlan.

I thank Deputy Connaughton for raising this matter. Community employment is an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long-term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a fixed-term basis. The purpose of community employment is to help unemployed people to re-enter the open labour market by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to a work routine and to assist them to enhance both their technical and personal skills.

The current eligibility criteria set by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for entry onto the community employment programme allows for a combination of periods on different social welfare payments including jobseeker's benefit, provided they add up to at least 12 months without significant interruption and the person is currently in receipt of the payment at the time of application. Community employment is not designed to cater for short-term unemployed persons as they are not as far removed from the open labour market as the main client group for the programme.

In April 2000, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment introduced capped limits on the amount of time that a person could participate on community employment. Community employment capping was introduced to facilitate the movement of participants through the programme, allowing new participants who would not otherwise have such an opportunity to avail of the programme. In November 2004, to cater for older workers in particular, the standard three-year community employment cap was revised to allow those 55 years of age and over to avail of a six-year period on community employment based on participation since 3 April 2000. Subsequently, the participation limit for persons eligible for community employment based on a social welfare disability linked payment, including those under 55, was increased by one year. These measures were introduced in recognition of the fact that older participants and participants with a disability may find it more difficult to progress into the open labour market.

Funding for community employment in 2009 has been provided with a view to maintaining overall numbers on FÁS schemes. At present, over 22,000 people are participating in community employment schemes nationally. Some €6.6 million was provided to FÁS in 2009 for the provision of an additional 400 community employment places. In delivering these places, FÁS operates flexibly in the management of this allocation in order to maximise progression to the labour market while at the same time facilitating the support of community services. This provision of places is managed through a standardised application process between regional FÁS offices and local sponsor and community organisations. Any issues regarding the allocation of places are dealt with in this context. In so far as participants remain on community employment, they are precluding someone else from benefiting from the programme. FÁS makes every effort to ensure that differing levels of demand between neighbouring schemes are equalised. FÁS also operates the programme flexibly as far as possible to ensure the continuation of community projects.

Persons that are considered job-ready are progressed through FÁS employment services onto other options, thus freeing up community employment places for others in greater need.

See this speech in context