Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 April 2012
583 Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide an update on her statement in Dáil Éireann (details supplied) that she would seek to make graduate architects eligible for the jobbridge scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18560/12]
View answerMy Department continues to monitor and review the operation of the JobBridge scheme including its eligibility criteria on an on-going basis.
In relation to possibility of utilising the JobBridge Programme for graduates to secure the experience necessary to secure professional accreditation, this matter is still under review.
584 Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will report on the establishment of the new National Employment and Entitlements Service; when the new body will be fully operational; the number of staff that have been allocated to NEES; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18568/12]
View answerThe Department is establishing a new National Employment and Entitlements Service, as provided for in the Programme for Government, which will integrate employment and benefit payment services within the Department. While significant progress has been made to date in establishing the new service, because of the scale of transformation required, full implementation will involve a multi-annual programme of change. The development of the new service is being brought about with minimal disruption to the on-going work of the Department. It will not be a stand-alone service but will be an integrated, albeit innovative, element of the Department's service provision for those of working age. The new one-stop shop service will be trialled in four offices; Parnell Street/Kings Inn and Tallaght offices in Dublin and also in offices in Arklow and Sligo from June of this year. The first step in establishing the National Employment and Entitlements Service was the transfer of staff and services from FÁS and the Community Welfare Service to this Department. This was completed on schedule on the 1st of January this year.
Because the new service is an integrated service within the Department, there is no separate staff allocation envisaged for the service. The new service will be provided by the staff currently working within the Department, which is now approximately 6,500 including c1,700 staff who recently transferred. There is however, a need to build capacity in delivering the case manager role and training will be required for staff in developing these competencies. Already about 400 of the staff who transferred are involved in activation/case management, most of whom have received professional training in employment guidance. Many of the 1,000 staff in the Community Welfare Service also have some experience of working as case managers. In addition there are c 300 staff employed by the Local Employment Services Network funded by this Department.
In releasing more staff to work in the new service the Department expects to realise efficiency gains from the continued upgrading and development of IT support systems and the automation of routine resource intensive operations. This will release staff currently involved in manual routine work to populate the case management service. The NEES project plan also allows for the outsourcing of some of the case management and activation services to complement the Department's own resources in referral and job placement.
