Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 13 March 2014
26. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his views on whether the current system of employers PRSI can be enhanced to support job creation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12166/14]
View answerPolicy responsibility for the PRSI system is a matter for the Minister for Social Protection and any substantive changes to the PRSI system are generally agreed by the Government as a whole in the context of the Budgetary process.
As the Deputy will be aware, the PRSI system operates on a tripartite basis, with contributions being made by employers, employees and the State to the Social Insurance Fund which finances a range of social welfare benefits. Self-employed people also make contributions to the Fund. Employer’s PRSI is a component of labour costs and it is important that, along with income tax and corporation tax, we maintain competitive rates to support job creation while balancing the needs of the Social Insurance Fund to pay social welfare benefits. There are, however, many other ways of supporting employers to create jobs.
Last year, the Government introduced the JobsPlus scheme which provides financial support to employers who recruit a person who has been unemployed for 12 months or longer. The scheme provides a payment of €7,500 over two years to an employer who recruits a person who has been unemployed for 12 months, but less than 24 months. A payment of €10,000 over two years is made to the employer in respect of a person who has been unemployed for more than 24 months. The JobsPlus scheme replaced the former Revenue Job Assist scheme and the Employer’s PRSI exemption scheme in July 2013 and has already had a higher uptake than both of those schemes combined.
JobsPlus was a key initiative of the 2013 Action Plan for Jobs. The 2014 Action Plan for Jobs was published at the end of February and contains a range of commitments for delivery across all Government Departments and 46 agencies to support job creation in the economy.
