Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I hope I do not take too long to get to the point that is of interest to the Senator, but he knows what the replies are like.

The Department of Social Protection provides a wide range of activation supports for jobseekers, lone parents and people with disabilities. One of the Department's key objectives is to support jobseekers to improve their education and skills levels in order to help them meet the requirements of the labour market. The Department has estimated expenditure of €994 million on employment supports in 2013. Against a backdrop of significant fiscal consolidation, the Government has provided resources of over €1 billion on a similar range of supports in 2014.

The Pathways to Work programme includes the provision of opportunities, supports and assistance to jobseekers by intensifying the Department's level of engagement, in particular, those who are at risk of becoming long-term unemployed. The Intreo service delivery model offers practical, tailored employment services and supports for jobseekers and this new service model, which is more efficient in its delivery, is currently being rolled out across the country. Activation measures include the requirement to attend group or individual meetings, and-or avail of suitable education, training or development opportunities, or specified employment programmes, which are considered appropriate to a person's circumstances and which have been agreed with him or her as part of a personal progression plan.

My understanding is that all workers on construction sites and in ancillary service employments are required to hold a valid Safe Pass certification. The aim of the SOLAS Safe Pass health and safety awareness training programme is to ensure that, over time, that all workers in construction will have a basic knowledge of health and safety and be able to work on-site without being a risk to themselves or others who might be affected by their acts or omissions. From a health and safety perspective, construction workers are bound by law to hold a valid Safe Pass card. It is a matter for the contractor to ensure that workers are provided with access to the necessary training to achieve the certification. The construction industry has done much commendable work in the past number of years to improve safety on construction projects which I believe has reduced the level of serious injury and deaths.

It is not the function of the Department to fund the provision of Safe Pass training and I consider that the responsibility resides with the employer. The Department is conscious, however, of the barriers posed by a lack of a pass or having lapsed Safe Pass certification for a jobseeker wishing to get back to work. To that end, the Department provides funding to the jobseeker under the technical employment support grant. The jobseeker must have registered with the Department's employment services and undertaken a guidance process leading to an agreed personal progression plan. The jobseeker must also be in receipt of certain specified welfare payments, such as a jobseeker's allowance, lone parent payments or payments related to disability and long-term illness benefits. In the past three years, approximately €778,000 has been provided to some 8,332 jobseekers nationally under the scheme.

TESG is designed to support a person to overcome identified barriers in progressing from unemployment to employment. Training, with limited exceptions, must be on certified courses. TESG can be used to meet the full costs of courses including Safe Pass certification. A jobseeker can access a maximum of €500 from the scheme per annum. Any decision to grant aid a particular intervention is also subject to the eligibility requirements of the scheme and available funds.

Before approving a grant of this nature the Department will generally require proof that there is a clear identifiable employment opportunity. The Department also requires further information to ensure that the application is consistent with the prior employment history of the jobseeker and that an opportunity is likely to arise should a given course of training be approved.

The Department's services and supports are continually monitored and kept under review by management. Account is taken of the views of staff, public representatives and users of the service to ensure that the best use is made of all available resources with a view to providing an efficient service. The Department is very conscious of the need to provide efficient and effective customer facing services at a local level for clients of the Department. However, I take on board the points made by the Senator and I assure him that I will raise the points at issue with the Minister who, unfortunately, could not attend this evening.