Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate on the Government's priorities for the years ahead. While all of us in this House deal with daily representations of a diverse and varied nature, I have no doubt that the one overriding priority for everybody is the creation of jobs. Recent figure from the Central Statistics Office showing that 61,000 jobs were created in the past year are hugely encouraging. We have moved from a situation three years ago where jobs were being lost at a rate of 1,600 per week to a position today where 1,200 jobs are being created every week. This is significant and positive progress, and great credit is due to the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton, for his tremendous work on the Action Plan for Jobs, which is clearly bearing fruit.

The objective now must be to build on this progress and reach the ambitious target the Taoiseach has set of reducing unemployment to below 10% by 2016. To this end, there must be a particular focus on youth unemployment, which remains stubbornly high at 25%, albeit reduced from a peak of 33%. In this regard, I welcome the youth guarantee initiative. The danger, however, is that young people may fall into the trap of long-term unemployment. If a person leaves school and goes straight into claiming jobseeker's payment, having never entered the workforce, there is a danger that it becomes a normal way of life. It is worrying to note that according to an OECD report last year, Ireland had the third highest share of 15 to 19 year olds who are neither in work nor in education or training, the so-called NEET cohort.

We must bridge the gap from when young people leave education until they find a job. This requires the introduction of a greatly enhanced apprenticeship scheme. Looking to the German model, there are more than 340 recognised occupations for apprenticeship purposes across a broad range of areas, from accounting to plumbing. In Ireland, by contrast, we have only a tiny fraction of that number of apprenticeship places available, the majority of them based solely in the area of construction. I met recently with representatives of a graphic design company which is on the cusp of a major expansion. However, management simply cannot find employees with the necessary skills set. While there are plenty of college graduates available for work, they do not have the on-the-job experience that is required. There is a gap between the university degree and the world of work. As the company representatives I spoke to explained, if they were to take on a graduate, they are required to pay full wages even though that person, through no fault of his or her own, will not have the full set of skills to do the job. He or she could, as a result, make mistakes that would cost the company money.

This situation is not the fault of graduates. The problem is that they lack hands-on experience and there is no system in place to ensure they get it. In Germany, on the other hand, it is usually not possible to secure a job unless one has served an apprenticeship with an employer. Apprentices receive a training allowance from their employer of approximately €650 per month and once they successfully complete their apprenticeship, they are often taken on permanently. From the employer's perspective, this makes it much easier to take a person on to gain that invaluable hands-on experience. In addition, it fosters a strong work ethic from an early age. By going to work, the trainees feel valued and know they are making a contribution to society. It is important to bear in mind that there are young people who do not want to or are unable to go on to further education. When they leave school, there is a danger they will enter a cycle of claiming social welfare which can be difficult to escape. Under a strong apprenticeship system, local employers would liaise with schools to identify early school leavers and those who will not progress to third level, and provide them with opportunities, through an apprenticeship programme, that will help to prevent their becoming unemployed.

I commend the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Joan Burton, on her efforts under the Pathways to Work strategy. The introduction of schemes such as JobBridge, JobsPlus and the Momentum programme are having an impact. I recall the serious demand for the WebActivate programme that was launched in Monaghan last year. I have had feedback from several young people regarding the excellence of that particular scheme. Nevertheless, we must give serious consideration to the issue of apprenticeships. It is an issue I would like to see progressed in the year ahead as part of the youth guarantee scheme.

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