Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

JobsPlus provides a direct monthly financial incentive to employers who recruit employees from those who are long term on the live register. The incentive is payable monthly over two years if the employee is retained in full-time employment for those two years. JobsPlus is biased in favour of those who are longer-term unemployed. The value of the aggregate monthly payment is €7,500 for employing a jobseeker who has been on the live register for 12 to 24 months and €10,000 if the jobseeker was on the live register for more than two years, in other words, very long-term unemployed. A provision of €13.5 million has been included in the Vote of the Department for the scheme in 2014. Since its launch in July 2013 to the end of June 2014, JobsPlus has supported 2,634 jobseekers in full-time employment with 2,007 employers nationally. Approximately 60% of jobseekers being supported had been on the live register for more than two years at the time of recruitment. That is a very positive outcome. I am sure Deputy Kyne will appreciate that the longer people are unemployed, often the harder it is for them to get a breakthrough in getting back to work.

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