Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 16 April 2014
33. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection the criteria for the conducting of interviews with unemployed persons to assist them in their job seeking activities; and the safeguards in place to ensure that social welfare recipients are not unduly pressurised or feel intimidated. [17645/14]
View answerMy Department is committed to providing a professional, inclusive and timely service that is responsive to the needs of its clients, including comprehensive employment support and income support services. It is also committed to conducting its business in an impartial, open and transparent manner and seeks to treat people fairly, with dignity and respect. A customer charter setting out the standards of service that people can expect in their dealings with the Department is displayed in the Department’s public offices and on its website www.welfare.ie. Training programmes are provided for relevant Departmental staff in the areas of claims decision making, customer service, non-violent crisis intervention, change management, communications skills, community welfare service, jobseeking supports, employer engagement, adult guidance and IT systems. Training materials are continuously updated to reflect new programmes and changes to existing initiatives. To this end, the Department, in conjunction with an external partner, is currently undertaking a review and redesign of its functional training programmes, focusing on the skills required for key frontline roles in the organisation. To monitor its services, the Department operates a well-established formal comment and complaint system which allows clients to provide feedback on the quality of services they receive. The Department values the views of all those accessing their service and will continue to monitor and improve on the quality of service it provides as opportunities to do so arise.
