Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 157: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of staff that are employed as community welfare officers (details supplied) both part and full time; her plans to reduce these numbers in the immediate future; if so, the number of same; if she will make provision for the allocation of temporary staff as they are needed over the coming months; if the JobBridge initiative is applicable for these positions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21450/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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I understand that the Deputy's office has confirmed to my office that this question relates solely to the operation of the central Rents Unit in Dublin.

The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is currently administered on behalf of the Department by the Community Welfare Services division of the Health Service Executive. Late last year agreement was reached between the Health Service Executive (HSE) and unions representing the Community Welfare Officers that the staff of the Community Welfare Service (CWS) would transfer to the Department of Social Protection with effect from 1st January 2011 on a secondment basis initially. The period of secondment is to last for 9 months until the end of September 2011. During this period these staff will remain employees of the HSE but are subject to the general direction and control of the Minster for Social Protection. From 1 October 2011 it is intended that the staff of the CWS will be transferred fully to the Department as civil servants and will be accountable to the Minister in the same way as other civil servants.

Historically rent supplements have been administered locally by the Community Welfare Officer (CWO) directly to the customer. However, as a result of a large increase in claims being made in recent years and the restriction on staff recruitment in the service, it was decided that priority had to be given to the demand on the local service for claims where an immediate decision was needed such as basic payments and exceptional needs payments. It was considered that rent supplement claims could be delivered more efficiently through centralised units. A unit to provide this service was set up on the North side of Dublin in December 2010 to take claims from Balbriggan, Swords and other areas of North Dublin where a large increase in demand for rent supplement had been experienced. As the Deputy is aware it is a matter for all Departments and public sector organisations to continue to manage services with diminishing resources taking advantage of business re-engineering possibilities as provided for in the Public Service Agreement 2010 - 2014.

I have been advised that a number of staff in the CWS were employed in a temporary capacity by the HSE in 2010 for a period of six months, including some of the staff in the rent unit in question. These contracts were subsequently extended to June 2011 from when they are being gradually withdrawn.

A number of Transition Managers have been appointed from within the Community Welfare Service, to work with the Department of Social Protection to oversee the transfer of the service to the Department and to manage the day to day administration of the service. The relevant Transition Managers are currently in the process of examining the service implications arising from the loss of these temporary staff, in particular from the rent units. They are also examining the model being used to deliver the service to ensure that the most efficient process will be used to improve service delivery. Further initiatives are also proposed which will result in process improvement with a realignment of resources. There are no plans at present to allocate additional temporary staff to this unit.

To avail of job-bridge, the national internship scheme, applicants must be currently in receipt of certain jobseeker's payments and have been unemployed for a minimum period of 78 days in the preceding six months. Potential providers of internship (host organisations) approach FÁS who will assess the vacancies to ensure that they are appropriate for the scheme.

One of the conditions of the national internship scheme is that no vacancies exist in the area in which the internship is being offered as such the positions in question would not qualify for inclusion in the scheme.