Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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611. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person who goes out on Tús must do 19 hours work and a person who signs up with a company (details supplied) only has to complete a half day's training a week to satisfy qualification for full social payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20658/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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My Department operates a range of employment supports, such as Tús and JobPath, which are designed to encourage and support people who are unemployed to re-enter the labour market.

JobPath is an activation measure which also supports people who are long-term unemployed. It helps them to secure and sustain full-time paid employment. Participants spend 12 months on JobPath and receive intensive individual support to help them tackle barriers to employment and to assist them in finding jobs. Each person is assigned a personal adviser who assesses a person’s skills, experience, challenges and work goals. The personal adviser works with the jobseeker to agree a personal progression plan that includes a schedule of activities, actions and job focused targets. Participants are provided with a range of training and development supports. If the jobseeker secures employment they will continue to receive support for at least three months and up to twelve months while in employment.

Tús is a community work placement initiative which provides short-term, work opportunities for those who are unemployed for more than a year. It is designed to break the cycle of unemployment and improve the employability and work readiness of participants. It provides the participants with opportunities to put their existing skills into practise and to learn and develop new skills by working 19½ hours per week in their community.

Both of these supports are designed to assist people who are long term unemployed to return to work and become independent of welfare support. In general, jobseekers cannot participate in two schemes simultaneously. This restriction applies to TÚS, JobPath and other schemes. However, if a person has completed their engagement with the one service and continues to be unemployed, participation on other schemes remains an option that can be considered for that person subject to an assessment by a departmental case officer.

I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.