Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 November 2012
330. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide an update on the way JobBridge is audited to ensure that employers do not use repeat internships to avoid employing new paid staff and if her attention has been drawn to any cases where this practice has been noticed and halted. [50869/12]
View answerThe JobBridge Scheme has made significant progress since it came into operation on the 1st July 2011. Over 12,100 internships have commenced to date with 5,398 participants currently on an internship as at 15th November 2012 and over 1,900 internship opportunities presently advertised on www.jobbridge.ie.
The interim evaluation report conducted by Indecon found that 52% of the participants who have finished their JobBridge internship placement have progressed into employment. These progression rates compare favourably with European averages in this area.
In order to protect the Intern and to ensure the integrity of the JobBridge Scheme a variety of control measures and criteria have been introduced. These ensure that the internship does not displace an existing position; that it provides appropriate training and development experience; and that appropriate mentoring and support is provided to the Intern.
Under the current guidelines, upon the conclusion of an internship position a cooling off period of 6 months must elapse before a Host Organisation can re-advertise either this position or another placement in the same area of activity. This is to prevent potential displacement and checks are conducted by the National Contact Centre in Edenderry. However, should the proposed placement be in a different area of activity or in cases where a Host Organisation has employed their incumbent intern no such cooling off period will be applied.
Furthermore, to ensure that both the host organisation and intern are abiding by the spirit and the rules of the scheme, the Department of Social Protection are involved in the on-going monitoring of internships. Through a strong on the ground presence; this involves the regular review of monthly compliance reports and the conducting of random monitoring site visits to facilitate discussions with both parties to the Internship. I am delighted to advise that 95% of monitoring visits conducted to-date were of a satisfactory nature. Remedial action has been taken in a small number of cases where the monitoring exercise deemed that not all aspects of the internship were of a satisfactory nature.
It is worth noting that participation in the Scheme is voluntary and an intern may contact the JobBridge Team at any stage of their Internship for advice and support. Moreover, any individual who suspects that an internship may be in breach of the scheme’s criteria, including cases of suspected or potential displacement and quality may contact the JobBridge directly via the ‘Contact Us’ section of the JobBridge website. This dedicated support unit will investigate matters further.
However, it is important to note that an independent evaluation of the Scheme is currently being undertaken by Indecon International Economic Consultants and it is anticipated that a final report will be published later this year. Part of its remit includes recommendations on how the Scheme might be improved or expanded. It is at this stage that further consideration will be given to amending the terms and conditions of the Scheme. Any such amendments to the scheme will be notified via the website.
