Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The critical issue is that there are numbers of people who have been out of work for a very long time. A part-time job placement with a local authority is restricted to less than 20 hours. There is a fair level of interest in this scheme, particularly in rural areas because people are contributing to their local community. It is a very positive opportunity for individuals who, through no fault of their own, have lost their jobs. Such a person may have been employed in the building trade and the job disappeared. In some cases, people have returned to their home rural areas while others have been at home for a long period of time. I am told by people that they would love an opportunity to get back into work. Ireland's economic situation is known to the Deputy. In applying for a job the person who is more than two or three years on the live register, as opposed to a person already in employment in another job or who may be recently finished college or school, is at a significant disadvantage. This scheme is a way of helping people who have been out of work for a long time to avail of education, training and work experience. They can then make a valuable contribution to their own community while gaining good quality experience which will help them to go for a job.

See this speech in context