Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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202. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on a guide (details supplied) which reports that more than three quarters of companies have experienced a moderate or extreme skills shortage in 2017, the majority in information technology, life sciences and construction; the actions being taking to deal with severe skills shortages in the economy; and the actions set out in the 2018 Action Plan for Jobs regarding skills shortages. [29931/18]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Action Plan for Jobs 2018, the Government's chief instrument for job creation, sets out to embed the progress made in the labour market since the publication of the first Plan in 2012, and to ensure that Ireland is ready to exploit new opportunities as they arise. This progress is reflected in the 5.3 percent unemployment rate recorded in May 2018, down from a peak of 16 percent in early 2012.

As recognized in this year's Plan, maintaining the economy's growth potential as the labour market tightens and the economy approaches full employment depends on addressing potential labour shortages, in terms of the quantity and quality of specific skills requirements, particularly in key sectors for the Irish economy.

Through the Action Plan for Jobs my Department works with the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, the Department of Education and Skills, as well as other departments and agencies, to address potential labour and skills shortages in the economy through increasing the number of people able to participate in employment; and by ensuring that existing and future skills needs are met.

This year's iteration of the Action Plan for Jobs includes labour activation and supply measures aimed at removing barriers to participation in employment; facilitating access to work for those who wish to do so by ensuring they have the opportunity to address real or perceived skills deficiencies; and facilitating the inward migration of workers, typically skilled workers, including those who left during the recession.

These include further implementation of the Pathways to Work strategy; focusing activation efforts on groups outside the labour force; facilitating female participation in employment, notably through development of the Affordable Childcare scheme; and ensuring the Employment Permits system remains aligned to labour market needs through the undertaking of a system wide review.

This year's plan also reflects the significant reforms to the education and training system in recent years, introduced to identify and address skills requirements in various sectors and to work towards providing a system for responding to the existing and future skills needs of enterprise- these include the publication by the Department of Education and Skills of the National Skills Strategy and Action Plan for Education, 2016-2019, as well as the establishment of the Regional Skills Fora and broadly based National Skills Council, on which my Department is represented.

The 2018 Action Plan builds on these initiatives, by committing to the roll out of the Skills for Growth skills audit tool for regional enterprises; support for up to 6,200 Apprenticeship and 3,900 traineeship registrations; development of 10 new Apprenticeship programmes, as well as Springboard+ course provision, in sectors with identified skills needs; publication and implementation of a successor to the ICT Skills Action Plan; and the undertaking of a study on skills for the digital economy.