Written answers

Wednesday, 20 April 2016

Department of Social Protection

JobsPlus Scheme

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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40. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will engage with the Departments of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and Children and Youth Affairs to make the benefits currently available to employers availing of the JobsPlus scheme available to parents seeking to employ persons to provide affordable child care in the home; her views on the many benefits that would accrue from such a development for the child care worker, parents and Exchequer; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7487/16]

Photo of Kevin HumphreysKevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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As the Deputy is aware, the JobsPlus incentive provides for a direct monthly payment to employers who recruit employees from the Live Register and those transitioning into employment. It provides two levels of payment - €7,500 or €10,000 over two years - paid in monthly instalments provided the employment is maintained. The rate of payment depends on the length of time the person recruited was unemployed.

JobsPlus is open to all eligible employers, including those employing childcare workers. If a parent employs a person to provide childcare in the home, they can avail of the incentive if they are a registered employer and compliant with Irish tax and employment law.

The employment offered to the childcare employee must be of a full-time nature of at least 30 hours per week spanning over four days per week. Under the National Minimum Wage Act 2000, employees are entitled to a minimum wage, currently €9.15 per hour. Employers recruiting under the JobsPlus incentive are required to comply with the Act and other statutory provisions in respect of pay and conditions.

There are many benefits for employers and employees under the JobsPlus incentive. Every new full-time job supported under JobsPlus not only reduces social welfare payments made by the State, but critically reduces the payments made to the longer term unemployed who are more likely to become long-term dependents of welfare. The incentive also influences employers to consider longer-term unemployed jobseekers over those more recently unemployed or moving employment. In addition, these new full-time workers will contribute to the Exchequer in terms of tax and PRSI paid.

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