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

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The community employment scheme 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 temporary, fixed term basis.

In general, the period of participation on community employment is for one year. However, community employment participants who are working towards a major award or industry qualification can seek to extend participation by up to a further two years. During the current Covid-19 emergency, my Department continued to provide the necessary funding for community employment schemes while also introducing a number of contingency measures. These measures included the extension of all existing community employment participant contracts for the duration of the emergency.

Now that the country has begun the process of returning to normal operations and in keeping with the Government's Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business, the contingency measures have concluded and the recruitment of new community employment participants has recommenced.

Those participants who had their contracts extended during the emergency period are now finishing up on their schemes on a phased basis over the coming period and further extensions will not be granted.

The priority for my Department is to ensure that all employment and activation programmes have the best outcomes for participants. Places on these work programmes will continue to be available to support those who are long-term unemployed and furthest removed from the labour market while sustaining the role of community employment as an active labour market programme. While I appreciate that there are some participants who would like to stay on the scheme, the Deputy will appreciate that any extension would have a knock-on effect on others who wish to join the scheme.

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