Vol. 548 No. 2
324 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the reason a person working on community employment, being a lone parent, cannot receive family income supplement while similar personnel working on job initiative and Jobstart qualify for the same scheme; if he will reconsider this situation in order to encourage as many as possible to take up employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4101/02]
333 Mr. B. Hayes asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the reason family income support is not available to persons who work in community employment schemes; his plans to amend this particular provision; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4342/02]
334 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the reason a person on a community employment scheme does not qualify for family income supplement in the same way as a person on job initiative or Jobstart who do qualify; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4528/02]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 324, 333 and 334 together.
The Job Initiative Programme – JI – is administered by FÁS, under the aegis of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. This scheme is designed to provide full time employment for three years to long-term unemployed persons and lone parents. Payment rates are based on the going rate of pay for the job and there are no additional payments for spouse or children. JI participants are eligible to avail of family income supplement.
Similarly, employees taken on under the Jobstart scheme, which was phased out by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment over 2000/2001, were eligible to claim family income supplement. Under this scheme, €101.58 per week subsidy was paid to employers offering full-time jobs to long-term unemployed people, for one year.
The primary role of the community employment, CE, scheme, on the other hand, is to provide part-time employment to assist unemployed people, particularly the long-term unemployed, to re-enter the labour market. The Deputy will be aware that participation levels on CE are gradually being reduced, reflecting the falling numbers of the long-term unemployed and the shift in emphasis away from work experience programmes to training, from which there is a greater level of progression to employment. CE participants receive payments which are in excess of their entitlements under the social welfare system. In addition, the rate is adjusted based on the number of dependants in the household. For example, a CE participant with an adult dependant and two child dependants receives €255.50 per week, as compared with an entitlement under long-term unemployment assistance of €231.20. CE participants are also free to supplement their payments through earnings from work outside of their working hours on the programme.
The purpose of the family income supplement, FIS, scheme is to create an incentive for full-time workers with families, who are in low paid employment, to remain at work. Extension of FIS to CE participants would not be consistent with these policy objectives. Although FIS is not available to lone parents working on community employment schemes, there is additional income support available under the one parent family payment, OPFP, scheme. Because of the earnings disregards associated with the OPFP, recipients can earn up to €146.50 per week and still qualify for a full rate OPFP. Those who earn between €146.50 and €293.00 per week may still qualify for a reduced payment.
