Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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16. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the discussions he has undertaken since taking up office to examine the case presented by community employment supervisors to have access to a pension scheme; the current position of his Department on the matter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30937/16]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister is aware that I am a big fan of community employment schemes, but the success of a community employment scheme is utterly dependent on its supervisor. Since 1998, there has been an issue around pensions for supervisors. In the Labour Court in 2008, it was decided that community employment scheme supervisors should be given a pension. Many of them have worked for decades on community employment schemes and have provided a huge service to their community. The issue was being dealt with by the former Minister, Deputy Howlin, who established a community sector informal forum at Department of Public Expenditure and Reform level. There does not seem to have been much activity in recent months since the Minister came to office. I want to get a sense of where it is at.

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I am aware of the issues being discussed in, and the activities of, the community sector higher level forum, or the working group, which was convened to examine certain issues pertaining to the community employment sector, having regard to the consequences for costs and precedent. This includes community and employment supervisors and assistant supervisors who have been seeking, through their union representatives, the allocation of Exchequer funding to implement a Labour Court recommendation relating to the provision of a pension scheme dating back to 2008, as the Deputy acknowledged.  The forum met on 27 November 2015 and on 11 April 2016.  I plan to appoint a new chair soon and future meetings will be planned once the appointment is made.

Our position has always been that FÁS or the Department of Social Protection is not the employer and that it is not possible for the State to provide funding for such a scheme to employees of private companies even if those companies are, or were, reliant on State funding.  In considering the matter, I must have regard to costs and the precedent of such an arrangement were one to be created but my plan is, mindful of the fact that this working group has not met for a number of months, to appoint a chairman and restore the process that was under way.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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This goes back to 1998 when the Labour Court linked community employment scheme supervisors with managers in community training workshops. FÁS set aside €2.75 million to pay towards pensions. Most companies that run CE schemes just about have the resources to provide the budgets to run them and, therefore, pension schemes do not happen. I welcome the fact that the Minister is about to re-establish the working group within his Department but given many of the supervisors are approaching retirement age, urgency is needed to address the matter.

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I will put in place a chairman to get that work under way again. This relates to the debate I had with Deputies Murphy and Broughan earlier as one of the issues I face is the knock-on effects of such an arrangement across other sectors. For example, there are more than 3,000 section 39 bodies in the health sector. They are in receipt of State funding and they have their own employees. They have the welfare of their employees at heart but I have to consider what precedent would be set were an arrangement put in place for the community sector given the individuals employed in the sector are ultimately not employed by the State, even if many of the services they provide are funded by the State. However, I accept this is a serious matter and I will put a chairman in place and ensure the working group meets soon.