Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after “That Seanad Éireann:” and substitute:

“ recognises:

-that full employment, where possible, is the aim of all parties in this House;

-the importance of and need for activation measures which assist people moving from welfare into employment;

-that employment support schemes have assisted thousands of people into employment;

-that careful consideration and ongoing scrutiny is required of private companies that are hired to do work on behalf of the State;

-that poorly designed activation measures and programmes can have negative consequences and adverse effects on those participating in such programmes;

-that Jobpath has been the subject of several criticisms and concerns have been raised about the operation of the initiative; and

-that concerns have been raised about the impact that Jobpath is having on other activation schemes and Community Employment (CE) Schemes in particular;

calls on the Government:

-to ensure that all employment support schemes treat participants in a respectful and dignified manner;

-to put in place safeguards that will ensure those participating on Jobpath are offered suitable and appropriate employment;

-to conduct a review of type, quality and the sustainability of employment that people have entered into after participating in Jobpath;

-to ensure that sufficient mechanisms are in place for participants who may wish to make a complaint or raise concerns about Jobpath and the two companies tasked with delivering the service;

-to ensure that any complaints against the two companies tasked with delivering Jobpath are properly investigated and that appropriate action is taken where necessary to rectify any issues identified;

-to ensure that those tasked with delivering Jobpath are adequately trained and properly equipped to deal sensitively with the myriad of issues that may result in an individual being long-term unemployed;

calls on the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to review the impact that Jobpath is having on other Employment Support Schemes and CE schemes in particular with a view to ensuring that those who wish to continue to participate on CE schemes are able to do so, and to also ensure that Jobpath is not draining CE schemes of participants; and calls for an appropriate assessment to be carried out at the time of entry to Jobpath, or shortly afterwards in a form of a probationary period, to ascertain whether the individual is best suited to the proposed programme, or whether further engagement and participation in a CE scheme would be more beneficial.”