Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

JobPath is a relatively new approach to employment activation whereby my Department has procured additional resources, under contract, to enable us to provide a high quality case-managed service to people who are long-term unemployed. JobPath supplements the internal case management capacity of my Department's Intreo service and the local employment service, LES. Over the past year, this additional capacity has enabled my Department to provide an intensive one-to-one employment support and advisory service to over 60,000 long-term jobseekers who would otherwise not have received such a service.

All jobseekers are required to engage with my Department's activation service irrespective of whether the service is provided directly by my Department through Intreo or branch office, the LES or by JobPath. The period of engagement with JobPath for individuals is typically 52 weeks. During that time they receive intensive individual support to help them overcome barriers to employment and they are also provided with a range of training and development supports, including online modules, career advice, CV preparation and interview skills. During the year, if a person gets or is placed into a job, he or she will continue to receive assistance for at least three months and up to an additional 12 months while in employment to ensure the job can be continued. If someone has completed the 12-month engagement with the JobPath service and is still unemployed, participation on community employment, CE, and other schemes remains an option that can be considered at that stage.

So far over 60,000 jobseekers have engaged with JobPath since the service commenced in July 2015 and 145 complaints have been recorded. This is 0.2% of the total. The majority of the complaints were about people's initial reluctance to engage with the service or about an adverse customer experience. All complaints are taken seriously and have been resolved or are in the process of being resolved.

Legislation provides that sanctions in the form of reduced payments may be imposed by a departmental deciding officer where a person fails without good cause to co-operate with activation measures. These measures include attendance at group or individual meetings with case officers, willingness to avail of suitable education, training or development opportunities and also specified employment programmes that may be appropriate to a person's circumstances. JobPath providers do not have the authority to impose sanctions or penalty rates on anybody. My Department does not facilitate or encourage people to switch from one activation programme to another midstream. That applies both ways. The reason for this is to effectively manage the allocation of jobseekers to all services. It also ensures that there is continuity in the activation service provided, which enables the person concerned to follow a progression plan to employment and move from a dependence on a jobseeker's payment.

There have been some cases where people have sought to leave JobPath to take up a CE placement. There is a protocol in place whereby an individual has the option of taking up a CE placement if it is offered before the referral date to JobPath, with a confirmed start date within four weeks. CE schemes provide temporary work in communities as a stepping stone back to employment for people in receipt of a range of social welfare payments, including those on a long-term jobseeker's payment. However, CE placements are not full-time, sustainable jobs and do not pay as well as a minimum wage job. People should never be diverted from a regular job in favour of CE, Tús, Gateway, JobBridge or any other such scheme.

Under JobPath, client engagement is more frequent and more intensive. Some people may have difficulty in adjusting to this, especially those who have not had any meaningful activation support for a considerable period. JobPath tries to give people a sense of structure, which they will need if they are to re-engage with the workforce. The companies are subject to regular checks and inspections. In addition, my Department has commissioned a client satisfaction survey to ensure that services are being delivered satisfactorily. The results of this survey are expected before the end of the year. Overall, the response to JobPath has been quite positive and initial indications in terms of employment outcomes, such as getting people off welfare and into work, are also very encouraging.

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