Willie O'Dea
Question:381. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection her plans to extend access to the jobbridge scheme to the self employed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52490/12]
View answerTuesday, 27 November 2012
Questions (381)
Written answers
The National Internship Scheme provides internship opportunities of either 6 or 9 months for unemployed individuals in organisations in the private, public and community/voluntary sectors and at present is limited to individuals who are in receipt of one of the following claims (Jobseekers Allowance/Jobseekers Benefit/One Parent Family Payment/Disability Allowance) or are signing on for credits for at least 3 of the last 6 months (78 Days). The aim of JobBridge is to assist individuals in breaking the cycle where they are unable to get a job without experience. It provides them with an opportunity to gain valuable experience, relevant knowledge and skills within a working environment.
The JobBridge Scheme has made significant progress to-date since it came into operation on the 1st July 2011. 12,308 internships have commenced to date with 5,427 participants currently on an internship as at 22nd November 2012 and over 2,000 opportunities presently advertised on www.jobbridge.ie.
In response to the Deputy’s specific query, it is must be stated that the Scheme is open to self-employed individuals or companies in all sectors including private, public, voluntary and community sectors provided they have a minimum of 1 full time employee (employed for 30 hours or more per week, subject to tax and PRSI).
A host organisation participating in JobBridge must be in a position to provide a substantial commitment to their intern so as to ensure the provision of a quality internship.
To this end, a clear set of rules have been developed to protect the intern and safeguard the Scheme from potential abuse. Potential host organisations can avail of the JobBridge guidelines and full eligibility criteria available on the JobBridge website www.jobbridge.ie.
I wish to advise the Deputy that the interim evaluation report conducted by Indecon published on the 5th of October 2012 found that the majority (58%) of host organisations are small organisations employing less than 50 persons across a broad range of sectors.
Furthermore, I wish to advise that the existing terms and conditions of the Scheme including eligibility will be examined as part of this independent evaluation of the Scheme. This report will also present recommendations on how the Scheme might be improved. It is anticipated that this Report will be available by year end 2012. It is at this stage that further consideration will be given to amending the terms and conditions of the Scheme. Any such amendment or changes will then be notified via the website