Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

158. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he is aware of the growing difficulties faced by community and voluntary organisations across County Tipperary in maintaining essential services due to the chronic inability to fill vacancies on community employment (CE) schemes; the urgent measures being taken to address the recruitment crisis and ensure the sustainability of these vital community supports; if he has engaged with his colleague in the Department of Social Protection on the matter; the measures he can implement to support CE schemes that cannot fill vacancies where communities risk losing vital services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26221/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The objective of Community Employment (CE) scheme is to enhance the employability of disadvantaged and long-term unemployed persons by providing work experience and training opportunities for them within their local communities on a temporary fixed term basis.In addition to providing eligible people with valuable occupational experience and training as a stepping-stone to employment in the open-labour market, schemes such as CE also support important and, in many cases essential, local community services.The OECD in a recently published review of the CE and Tús schemes found a positive impact on the employment and earnings of participants, especially for older participants on CE and younger participants on Tús. The review also found that participants are less likely to rely on disability payments and are more likely to find employment after their participation.CE projects are in diverse areas and include the development, regeneration and enhancement of community spaces, environmental maintenance, early years, and after-school supports, heritage, arts, culture, tourism, sport, recycling and repair of equipment, visitation, friendly call, and befriending programmes for older people.There are currently 19,693 participants and 1,223 Supervisors on 810 CE schemes. Government investment in CE will amount to nearly €370 million in 2025.Given the strong labour market performance, the reduction in the number of unemployed people on the Live Register has impacted on the availability of potential candidates to participate on these schemes. A number of changes have been made in recent times to support CE sponsors in their recruitment and retention of participants. These changes include:

• A provision to allow CE participants who reach 60 years of age to remain in CE until they reach state pension age (66).
• Some flexibility granted to CE sponsors to retain existing participants for extended periods in cases where a replacement cannot be recruited immediately.
• Changes to eligibility criteria extending CE eligibility to the adult dependents of those in receipt of Jobseeker’s Allowance.
• A new pilot scheme to extend CE eligibility to those over 50 years of age in receipt of credits or a combination of credits & Jobseekers Benefit.I can assure the Deputy that the eligibility criteria, the duration timelines for participation and the referral process for CE continues to be kept under active review by my Department.