Written Answers Nos. 94-110
99. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to detail the number of jobseekers who have qualified for the JobsPlus initiative since July 2013; the number of these jobseekers who are still in employment; the number who are no longer in employment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1599/15]
View answer100. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to detail the number of employers who have employed one jobseeker under the JobsPlus scheme; the number who have employed two jobseekers; the number who have employed three jobseekers; the number who have employed four or more jobseekers under the scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1600/15]
View answer101. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if her Department has carried out any analysis of the pay levels of participants on the JobsPlus scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1601/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 99 to 101, inclusive, together.
JobsPlus provides a direct monthly financial incentive to employers who recruit employees from the Live Register and those transitioning into employment. It provides employers with two levels of payment - €7,500 or €10,000 over two years - paid in monthly instalments provided the employment is maintained. The rate of payment depends on the length of time the person is unemployed.
Since July 2013, 13,083 jobseekers have confirmed their eligibility for JobsPlus. Of these, 4,838 have gone on to take up employment or are approved to take up employment as of today with the support of the initiative. Of those who commenced employment with the support of JobsPlus 238 have left employment. The number of supported employees by individual employers is set out in Table 1.
TABLE 1 – JobsPlus: Number of supported employees per employer
|
Number of Employers |
Number of Employees Employed supported by JobsPlus |
Total Employees |
|
2779 |
1 |
2779 |
|
470 |
2 |
940 |
|
126 |
3 |
378 |
|
61 |
4 |
244 |
|
8 |
5 |
40 |
|
8 |
6 |
48 |
|
8 |
8 |
64 |
|
5 |
10 |
50 |
|
4 |
7 |
28 |
|
3 |
9 |
27 |
|
2 |
11 |
22 |
|
2 |
13 |
26 |
|
1 |
20 |
20 |
|
1 |
21 |
21 |
|
1 |
22 |
22 |
|
1 |
28 |
28 |
|
1 |
29 |
29 |
|
1 |
72 |
72 |
|
3,482 |
4,838 |
Employee pay rates are a matter for agreement between the employer and employee. Under the National Minimum Wage Act 2000, employees are entitled to a minimum wage, currently €8.65 per hour. Employers recruiting under the JobsPlus initiative are required to comply with the Act and other statutory provisions in respect of pay and conditions. The Department collects data from employers in respect of expected pay levels at registration. This data is summarised in Table 2.
TABLE 2 – JobsPlus: Pay levels reported by employers
|
Pay level |
Number of Employees |
Share |
|
Up to €17,500 |
937 |
19.4% |
|
€17,501 to €20,000 |
1436 |
29.7% |
|
€20,001 to €25,000 |
1442 |
29.8% |
|
€25,001 to €30,000 |
653 |
13.5% |
|
€30,001 to €35,000 |
248 |
5.1% |
|
€35,001 to 40,000 |
74 |
1.5% |
|
€40001 to €50,000 |
38 |
0.8% |
|
€50,001 to €60,000 |
8 |
0.2% |
|
More than €60,000 |
2 |
0.0% |
|
4,838 |
100% |
102. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to detail the number of systematic short time workers in receipt of social welfare payments or credits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1602/15]
View answer103. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to detail the number of week-on, week-off workers in receipt of social welfare payments or credits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1603/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 102 and 103 together.
At the end of December there were 1,333 systematic short time workers and 80 week on / week off workers in receipt of a social welfare payment.
104. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to set out the number of part-time and casual workers on the live register who are under 25 years of age; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1604/15]
View answerThe number of part time and casual workers under 25 years of age on the live register at the end of December 2014 was 8,377. A breakdown of this number by scheme and gender is detailed in the following tabular statement.
Under 25s on the Live Register in part-time or casual employment, December 2014
|
Scheme |
Male |
Female |
Total |
|
Jobseeker’s Allowance |
3,494 |
3,895 |
7,389 |
|
Jobseeker’s Benefit |
385 |
603 |
988 |
|
Totals |
3,879 |
4,498 |
8,377 |
105. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to set down the number of persons who received the respite grant in each of the past three years, by county, in tabular form; the cost to the Exchequer for each of the years of the grant, by county, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1623/15]
View answerThe following table 1 gives a breakdown of carers who received the annual Respite Care Grant during each of the years 2012 to 2014. The table records details of one payment only to each carer. As a result, any additional payment made to a carer in respect of a second, or subsequent, ill person (some 5,000 cases roughly) are not included. Nor does the report contain details when arrears are paid to the carer, in addition to the payment for the current year. Those who receive Carers Benefit from my Department and are paid the Grant on a manual basis (about 1,000 persons) are not included in this table.
Table 2 shows the expenditure resulting from the payments detailed in Table 1. The 2012 Respite Care Grant was €1,700 per person being cared for, €1,375 from 2013 onwards.
Table 1: Carers paid the Respite Care Grant, by county
|
County |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
|
Carlow |
1,099 |
1,145 |
1,200 |
|
Cavan |
1,012 |
1,087 |
1,136 |
|
Clare |
1,833 |
1,909 |
1,926 |
|
Cork |
8,238 |
8,828 |
9,022 |
|
Donegal |
3,456 |
3,602 |
3,659 |
|
Dublin |
13,800 |
15,063 |
15,795 |
|
Galway |
3,955 |
4,168 |
4,286 |
|
Kerry |
2,740 |
2,900 |
2,971 |
|
Kildare |
2,498 |
2,664 |
2,835 |
|
Kilkenny |
1,355 |
1,475 |
1,481 |
|
Laois |
1,109 |
1,190 |
1,245 |
|
Leitrim |
586 |
640 |
646 |
|
Limerick |
3,535 |
3,768 |
3,862 |
|
Longford |
824 |
871 |
933 |
|
Louth |
1,732 |
1,940 |
2,068 |
|
Mayo |
2,684 |
2,795 |
2,831 |
|
Meath |
2,112 |
2,282 |
2,401 |
|
Monaghan |
865 |
957 |
975 |
|
Offaly |
1,393 |
1,504 |
1,568 |
|
Roscommon |
1,145 |
1,199 |
1,269 |
|
Sligo |
1,090 |
1,186 |
1,210 |
|
Tipperary |
3,157 |
3,284 |
3,386 |
|
Waterford |
1,723 |
1,879 |
1,906 |
|
Westmeath |
1,363 |
1,480 |
1,570 |
|
Wexford |
2,735 |
2,919 |
3,001 |
|
Wicklow |
1,832 |
1,980 |
2,073 |
|
Others |
13 |
8 |
7 |
|
Total |
67,884 |
72,723 |
75,262 |
Table 2: Respite Care Grant expenditure, by county
|
County |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
|
Carlow |
1,868,300 |
1,574,375 |
1,650,000 |
|
Cavan |
1,720,400 |
1,494,625 |
1,562,000 |
|
Clare |
3,116,100 |
2,624,875 |
2,648,250 |
|
Cork |
14,004,600 |
12,138,500 |
12,405,250 |
|
Donegal |
5,875,200 |
4,952,750 |
5,031,125 |
|
Dublin |
26,860,000 |
20,711,625 |
21,718,125 |
|
Galway |
6,723,500 |
5,731,000 |
5,893,250 |
|
Kerry |
4,658,000 |
3,987,500 |
4,085,125 |
|
Kildare |
4,246,600 |
3,663,000 |
3,898,125 |
|
Kilkenny |
2,303,500 |
2.028,125 |
2,036,375 |
|
Laois |
1,885,300 |
1,636,250 |
1,711,875 |
|
Leitrim |
996,200 |
880,000 |
888,250 |
|
Limerick |
6,009,500 |
5,181,000 |
5,310,250 |
|
Longford |
1,400,800 |
1,197,625 |
1,282,875 |
|
Louth |
2,944,400 |
2,667,500 |
2,843,500 |
|
Mayo |
4,562,800 |
3,843,125 |
3,892,625 |
|
Meath |
3,590,400 |
3,137,750 |
3,301,375 |
|
Monaghan |
1,470,500 |
1,315,875 |
1,340,625 |
|
Offaly |
2,368,100 |
2,068,000 |
2,156,000 |
|
Roscommon |
1,946,500 |
1,648,625 |
1,744,875 |
|
Sligo |
1,853,00 |
1,630,750 |
1,663,750 |
|
Tipperary |
5,366,900 |
4,515,500 |
4,655,750 |
|
Waterford |
2,929,100 |
2,583,625 |
2,620,750 |
|
Westmeath |
2,317,100 |
2,035,000 |
2,158,750 |
|
Wexford |
4,649,500 |
4,013,625 |
4,126,375 |
|
Wicklow |
3,114,400 |
2,722,500 |
2,850,375 |
|
Others |
22,100 |
11,000 |
9625 |
|
Total |
118,802,800 |
99,994,125 |
103,485,250 |
107. Deputy Derek Nolan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will reconsider her Department's eligibility requirements for separated parents in respect of their accommodation needs in light of a recent court ruling (details supplied) from October 2014; if this ruling will be taken into consideration in the decision-making process in respect of the needs of their children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1636/15]
View answerAs acknowledged in the Judgement referred to by the Deputy, the legislation governing entitlement to rent supplement already provides that decision makers must have due regard to the circumstances of an individual and the relationship with his/her children in terms of financial and material support and dependency. In this particular case however, the Judge considered that the decision makers did not have regard to certain specified matters relating to financial and material support in deciding the case and remitted the matter to be re-considered in the light of those issues.
The fact that one parent is in receipt of rent supplement would not in itself preclude the other parent from being entitled to assistance towards his or her rent. In these situations, the circumstances of both parents are taken into account when an application for a rent supplement is being determined including matters relating to financial and material support in relation to their children.
Persons seeking a rent supplement must first satisfy a decision maker that they have a housing need that they are unable to meet from within their own resources. In addition, the decision maker must be satisfied that the residence is reasonably suited to the residential and other needs of the claimant and that the rent payable is reasonable having regard to the nature, character and location of the residence.
108. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will provide details of all consultancy firms engaged by her Department during 2014; if she will also provide details of all the relevant fees paid to those firms during the period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1673/15]
View answerThe procurement of services is essential to support the Department in providing high quality service to the public in a cost effective and efficient manner and is governed by a comprehensive regulatory, legal and procedural framework.
The Department engages consultants (individuals or organisations) to provide intellectual or knowledge based services (e.g. expert analysis and advice) including the delivery of reports, studies, assessments, recommendations and proposals that contribute to decision making or policy making.
The majority of expenditure on consultancy expertise is to support the Department in implementing a multi-annual service delivery modernisation and transformation programme involving business process, organisational and technological change. These programmes are supported by the procurement of separate external development services (IT external service provision) as well as engagement of consultants to provide strategic technical advice. Further technical consultancies relate to the on-going development of the Department’s extensive information technology systems. A breakdown of the annual expenditure on consultancy and also IT external service provision for previous years is available on the Department’s website at http://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/Procurement-Policy.aspx.
The information requested by the Deputy is set out in the following table. I am satisfied that the engagement of consultants provides valuable support to the Department and that the procurement of consultants is compliant with best practice in realising value for money.
YEAR 2014
|
CONTRACTOR |
PURPOSE OF CONSULTANCY |
€ |
|
ESRI |
SWITCH Research Programme |
250,000 |
|
Accenture |
Review and redesign of front-line learning and development programmes |
237,636 |
|
Haywood Associates |
Business Objects Model - Technical Development Advice |
224,340 |
|
Naked Objects Group Ltd |
Business Objects Modelling Advice & Expertise |
200,857 |
|
ESRI |
Analysis & Measurement of Deprivation & Poverty |
55,978 |
|
Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion |
Advice in relation to External Service Delivery - Employment Services |
50,978 |
|
OECD |
Youth Guarantee Advice |
50,000 |
|
Axiom Consulting |
Culture & Values Report on Organisation Development |
47,880 |
|
Irish Research Council |
Social Inclusion Research Innovation Awards |
40,101 |
|
Microsoft |
Premier Support for Developers |
36,720 |
|
Deloitte & Touché |
IS Internal Audit Services |
23,616 |
|
Microsoft |
Support to Technical Architecture Group |
19,590 |
|
Deloitte & Touché |
Provision of Security Partner Services |
18,098 |
|
ESRI |
Profiling of “Stock” Live Registrants |
16,873 |
|
Mel Cousins & Associates |
Evaluation of Fund for EU Aid for the Most Deprived (FEAD) |
16,000 |
|
Deloitte & Touché |
Confidential Forensic Investigation Services |
10,148 |
|
ESRI |
Evaluation Research (BTEA) |
9,809 |
|
Geary Institute |
Social Inclusion Research Innovation Awards |
7,960 |
|
Rits |
Confidential Forensic Investigation Services |
6,541 |
|
ESRI |
Action Learning, Behavioural; Economics & Payments Migration |
2,000 |
|
Mike Byrne |
Tender Evaluation - Employment Services |
2,000 |
109. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection to outline the position regarding a carer's allowance application in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1677/15]
View answerThe department informs me that there is no application by the person concerned for carer’s allowance registered. If the person in question wishes to make an application, she should complete and return an application form (CR1) to carer’s allowance section in the social welfare services office, Longford, as soon as possible.
