Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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592. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason correspondence sent to her office has not yet been responded to; if the issue regarding the behaviour of JobPath with a person (details supplied) will be responded to; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23143/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I wish to clarify to the Deputy that I replied to the correspondence in question on the 22^ndMay 2018. As advised the primary goal of the Department’s activation services is to move people from unemployment to full-time and sustained employment. All jobseekers are required to engage with the Department’s activation service and this obligation applies irrespective of whether the service is provided by the Department’s own case officers or those advisers employed by external contractors such as the JobPath providers.

Currently, once a jobseeker is referred to JobPath, they are required to complete the requisite time with the service and will not be referred to a Work Placement programme such as Community Employment (CE) and Tús schemes, as they can only participate with one activation service at a time.

The Department has recently announced changes that will facilitate access, from 1st June this year, to CE and Tús schemes for long-term unemployed jobseekers who are engaging in JobPath. This has a number of benefits both for the vital services provided at a local level by participants on CE and Tús programmes and directly for the Department’s customers. It maximises the assistance and services for people who are long-term unemployed through a combination of a quality work placement and personalised job seeking support provided through the JobPath service.

Customers currently engaged with the JobPath service and those who may be referred in future will have the option of applying for CE and Tús placement while continuing to engage with JobPath.

Up to 1^stJune, where a jobseeker on the date of their referral to JobPath has received written confirmation of an offer of a placement on a CE Scheme, with a start date within 4 weeks of the JobPath referral date, they were facilitated to take up the placement wished.

The person concerned however does not currently meet these criteria. He was referred to the JobPath programme on 17^thMarch this year and received a written offer of a CE placement on 27^thMarch. He was incorrectly advised on 6^thApril that he was eligible to take up this placement, but as the offer did not pre-date the JobPath referral date he did not meet the eligibility criteria and is therefore required to remain on the JobPath programme.

Nevertheless, with the implementation of these new rules he will become eligible to take up this, or any other, CE placement on or after 1^stJune this year. Should he wish to avail of this option after 1^stJune he will benefit from the jobseeking support of JobPath while also availing of part-time work experience and quality training and development opportunities provided by a CE scheme.