Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour)
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540. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will task JobsIreland and the Intreo service with supporting Ukrainian refugees and others in the international protection system in assisting them in securing skills appropriate employment opportunities that matches their educational and work experience, knowledge and expertise, or if she has plans to pilot such a programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23002/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Under the EU Temporary Protection Directive, my Department is providing income support and employment services to assist Ukrainians in Ireland who have fled the war in Ukraine.

My Department's first priority is to address their immediate income support needs, followed by the provision of employment advice and support.

To date, my Department has issued just under 30,000 PPS numbers to people (of all ages) from Ukraine who have arrived here to flee the war, with 15,000 adults on income support.

In relation to employment supports, a dedicated section on www.jobsireland.ie has been developed to provide information on employment supports and opportunities for those newly arrived from Ukraine. This information is available in Ukrainian and Russian.

Employers across all sectors who wish to support people arriving from Ukraine through provision of employment opportunities are advised to register on www.jobsireland.ie to advertise vacancies. This will enable Intreo Employment Services Officers to match the skills of those seeking employment with available work opportunities. People arriving from Ukraine seeking employment can also use jobsireland to upload details of their skills and experience for matching with available employment opportunities. Ukrainians are invited to attend Intreo Jobs Fairs and other employment events arranged countrywide.

Since the middle of April, Intreo Employment Services are arranging employment support events specifically for Ukrainians. These are being arranged on an outreach basis in, or close to, current accommodation hubs and by inviting Ukrainians to Intreo Centres to receive these services.

At these events, details of Ukrainians proficiency in English, their qualifications, employment history and employment preference are provided to assist with job matching. Those attending are also assisted on site to find employment through the provision of information on employment opportunities – via jobsireland.ie and with ‘jobs walls’ advertising local vacancies. Assistance is also provided to ensure that Ukrainians are on the correct income support payment, be it jobseeker's allowance or another payment more appropriate to their personal circumstances.

To date Intreo Employment Services staff have engaged with almost 4,000 Ukrainians at these events. Of those, many have high levels of education and professional qualifications, and they have a broad range of work experience. Around 60% have indicated that English language skills may be a barrier to finding employment.

My Department is also working closely with education and training boards to facilitate access to relevant training supports, including English language training.

Therefore at this stage, widespread employment supports are being provided to Ukrainians through a number of channels, including dedicated supports for Ukrainians. My Department through Intreo will continue this work, to assist Ukrainians find employment while they remain in Ireland.

My Department's employment services are available to those in the International Protection system. Intreo Employment Services staff engage systematically with refugees who are in receipt of a jobseeker payment and the walk-in service is available to all on a volunteer basis.

Local teams have also been engaging with Cultural Ambassadors, linked with Local Community Development Committees, to explore how to best leverage their services to support migrants, refugees and asylum seekers into employment.

I trust this clarifies matters for the Deputy.