Written answers
Tuesday, 29 September 2015
Department of Social Protection
Labour Activation Measures
Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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219. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of persons on the labour activation schemes who are available; if she will provide, in tabular form, the numbers on each type of scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33388/15]
Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The Government’s primary strategy to tackle unemployment is to create the environment for a strong economic recovery by promoting competitiveness and productivity. However, the Government recognises that as the recovery takes hold, there is a need for additional measures to ensure that as many as possible of the jobs created are taken up by jobseekers. This is the rationale behind the Government’s Pathways to Work strategy, initiated in 2012. The 2015 update of the strategy focuses especially on provision of services, and on provision of new places, or reserved places on existing programmes, for the long-term unemployed and the youth unemployed. These programmes are therefore an important element in the overall policy approach.
Data on participation on the main activation programmes are published each month by the CSO. The data for July 2015 are reproduced below. There were 67,246 people availing of these programmes in July, which is an increase of 2,630 (4.1%) persons compared with the same month in 2014. The numbers on the Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) increased by 1,628 over the same period and includes 2,731 participating on Momentum full-time courses (437 in July 2014) and 107 participating on Springboard/ICT Skills Programme. It should be noted that participation on the BTEA tends to be at a seasonal low in summer, and to rise substantially during the academic year.
| Programme | Participants at Jul-15 |
|---|---|
| Back to Work allowance scheme – Employee strand.1 | 0 |
| Back to Work Enterprise allowance scheme – self-employed strand. | 11,739 |
| Short-term Enterprise Allowance2 | 486 |
| Total - Back to Work schemes | 12,225 |
| Part-time Job Incentive | 358 |
| TÚS - Community Work Placement Initiative | 8,014 |
| JobBridge -National Internship Scheme | 4,969 |
| Gateway (2013) | 2,258 |
| Other Activation Programmes | 15,599 |
| Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS)3 | 5,000 |
| Back to Education Allowance4 | 4,976 |
| Total - Back to Education Courses: | 9,976 |
| Community Employment Schemes (excluding Supervisors) | 22,913 |
| FAS (Solas) full time training for the unemployed | 6,533 |
| TOTAL | 67,246 |
1This scheme was closed to new applications from 1st May 2009.
2This scheme was introduced from 1st May 2009. It provides immediate support for someone in receipt of Jobseekers Benefit who wants to start a business.
3Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS): VTOS figures are estimated.
4BTEA figures include all schemes but participants from JA & JB are not entitled to BTEA during the summer holidays. Includes MOMENTUM participants from February 2013.
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