Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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71. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to the concerns raised regrading the impact that JobPath is having on community employment schemes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39441/17]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My Department provides a range of activation supports catering for long-term unemployed jobseekers and those most distant from the labour market. These supports include Community Employment (CE) and JobPath. JobPath aims to place people into full-time sustainable employment. The period of engagement with the service for any individual is typically 52 weeks. During that time they receive intensive individual support to help them overcome barriers to employment. CE provides part-time temporary work in local communities, including opportunities for training and development as a stepping-stone back to employment, for people in receipt of a range of social welfare payments, including those on a long-term jobseeker’s payment. While CE is a stepping stone back to employment, these positions are not full-time sustainable jobs. These schemes help to break the cycle of unemployment and improve a person’s chances of returning to the labour market.

It should be noted that my Department recently implemented changes to the terms and conditions of participation on CE. The main purpose of these changes is to broaden the availability of CE to a greater number of people on the live register and to standardise other conditions around the length of time a person can participate on the programme. As part of these changes, the general qualifying age for CE for those on the live register has been reduced from 25 to 21 years. It is also now easier for previous participants who have exhausted their CE entitlement to requalify, as participation prior to the year 2007 will be disregarded. In addition those who have completed their year-long engagement with JobPath may, if eligible, apply for a CE vacancy.

If any CE scheme is experiencing particular difficulties, they should contact their local Intreo office for assistance.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.