Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will providea breakdown of persons formerly employed in construction trade categories currently receiving unemployment benefit; the action being taken to help these persons back into work; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4353/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

One in four persons on the Live Register – some 109,000 persons – is a former construction worker. Approximately half of these persons (53,000) stated that they previously worked in a trade, over 10,000 previously worked as plant and machinery operatives, and some 1,500 previously worked as architects, town planners or surveyors. The remainder have no stated occupation within construction.

The Pathways to Work policy and the establishment of the new integrated National Employment and Entitlement Service (Intreo) service will transform the nature and level of engagement between our employment and income support services and the unemployed. The Pathways to Work approach involves more regular and on-going engagement with people who are unemployed through active case management and profiling. These policies apply to former construction workers in the same way as for other unemployed workers.

There are various initiatives to allow those who are out of work to up-skill through the education and training system. The most prominent schemes in this regard are the range of training programmes provided by FÁS, the Back to Education Allowance, the Springboard Initiative and MOMENTUM. Some 24,000 people commenced full-time FÁS courses for unemployed adults in 2012, and a further 21,000 undertook FÁS evening courses. FÁS offers a wide range of training programmes in the areas of energy efficiency and sustainable sources of energy that are of potential relevance to former construction workers. These include oil-fired appliance servicing; domestic gas installation; domestic solar hot water systems; domestic thermal insulation; air tightness testing and measurement; insulation; passive house building envelope; passive house construction; heat recovery mechanical systems and overhead line worker. FÁS also offers training in traditional stone building following an increase in demand from householders and local authorities for persons qualified in these traditional skills.

FÁS is increasing its training provision in sustainable technologies in response to an anticipated increase in demand for these types of skills. New courses include intelligent building control systems; small scale wind systems implementation; micro solar photo voltaic systems; large scale wind turbine technician; and sustainable waste management. In recent years, following the collapse of the construction industry, almost 7,000 of a population of roughly 28,000 apprentices were made redundant. Under the Redundant Apprentice Placement scheme, FÁS places redundant apprentices with reputable employers to enable them to complete the on-the-job components (phases 3, 5, and 7) of their apprenticeship and thus qualify for the National Craft Award. For the year 2012/13, there were 25,800 participants on the Back to Education Allowance scheme.

Springboard offers a choice of free courses in higher education from certificate, to degree, to post-graduate level. Some 6,000 places are available for this academic year. Sixty-per cent of Springboard participants have been unemployed for more than twelve months and one third of those for more than 24 months. At just under 20% of the total, people previously employed in the construction sector accounted for the largest single group of participants on the first series of Springboard courses launched in 2011.

MOMENTUM, a scheme for education and training interventions, is part of the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs initiative and is currently being rolled out by the Department of Education and Science through FÁS. MOMENTUM will support the provision of free education and training projects to allow 6,500 jobseekers (who are unemployed for 12 months or more) to gain skills and to access work opportunities in identified growing sectors. MOMENTUM will provide eligible jobseekers with

- Access to a range of quality education and training projects

- Links to identified job vacancies and employers

- Work placement and support

- Relevant industry and National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ ) Certification.

Under the scheme, Labour Market Education and Training Fund (LMETF) funding is being utilised to provide education and training solutions nationwide to the needs of both unemployed individuals and employers within the context of four themes. The first three themes are based on 'clusters of occupations'. These have been chosen because there is evidence available which shows that these skills are associated with relatively good employment opportunities.