Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide in tabular form the total number of persons in County Waterford that have taken part in the jobbridge programme since its inception; the total number that have completed an internship; the total numbers that are now in full time employment after completion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17237/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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JobBridge, the National Internship Scheme, came into operation on 1st July 2011. To-date, 16,326 placements have commenced. Of which, 556 placements have commenced in County Waterford. Of those in County Waterford, 356 individuals have now finished their internship and 200 individuals are currently on an internship. Of the 356 individuals who have finished their internship, 126,(36%) stated that they went directly into employment, either with their host organisation or with another employer, immediately on completion of their internship. This figure excludes interns who would have entered employment in the weeks subsequent to completing the internship.

An independent evaluation of JobBridge carried out by conducted by Indecon Economic Consultants found that 61% of individuals who have participated in JobBridge have progressed into employment within five months of completing their internship placements. This high level of progression into employment exceeds that of similar schemes across Europe, suggesting that JobBridge is an appropriate labour market intervention. If internships in County Waterford follow the national trend it would mean that 217 individuals would have found employment within 5 months of finishing their internship. Please see table below for further information.

Table 1.

JobBridge in County Waterford (1st July, 2011 – 11th April 2013)