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Departmental Schemes

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 September 2021

Thursday, 30 September 2021

Questions (275)

Claire Kerrane

Question:

275. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection if she has examined the estimated drop-off numbers from the community employment and rural social schemes. [47298/21]

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Written answers

The Deputy has clarified that the question relates to the impact of the six-year rule on the Community Employment (CE) and Rural Social Schemes (RSS).

CE is an active labour market programme providing eligible long-term unemployed and other disadvantaged people with an opportunity to engage with training and work experience in their communities on a fixed term basis. The programme aims to improve a persons opportunities to return to the labour market.  The six year participation limit ensures the continued availability of places on CE schemes to those furthest removed from the labour market. 

Following a review of the CE in 2017 a number of new conditions were introduced to further support progression to employment, broaden access to a wider range of people and, to standardise the conditions relating to the length of time a CE participant can remain on a scheme.   

In general, all placements for new entrants aged between 21 and 55 years are for one year.  However, participants working towards a major educational award can seek to extend participation by up to two years to enable them to reach the required qualification standards. Those over 55 years of age can remain on CE for up to three years, while CE participants who are aged over 55 and who commenced on CE prior to the introduction of the changes in 2017 continue to be eligible to remain on CE for six consecutive years. 

CE participants over the age of 62 can participate on a continuous basis up to the state pension age on the CE Service Support Stream (SSS), subject to certain criteria.  In total, 10% of CE placements are available under the service support stream.

The Deputy is aware that contract extensions were provided to CE and Tús participants at various stages of the Covid 19 pandemic to ensure that participants were not disadvantaged by restrictions on CE activities during the pandemic and to support the ongoing delivery of essential services where it was safe to do so.  A final contract extension has been provided to those CE and Tús participants until October, 2021 and they will leave their respective schemes on a phased basis thereafter. 

Given that these exceptional supports are still in place, it is not possible to estimate any potential drop-off in numbers due to the six year participation limits, until normal activity has fully resumed.   My Department continues to monitor the position closely and is acutely conscious of the need to ensure that placements on the scheme will continue to be available to the long term unemployed, including the new cohort of long-term unemployed those whose jobs are permanently lost due to COVID-19.

RSS is an income support programme that provides part-time employment opportunities within community and voluntary organisations in local areas for farmers or fishers in receipt of Farm/Fish Assist, or certain other social welfare payments, and who are underemployed in their primary occupation.

Participation on RSS is by self-selection with applications made directly to one of the implementing bodies (IB) that deliver the scheme locally. IBs are required to promote and publicise RSS to the best of their ability.

The six-year limit on RSS participation was introduced on 1st February 2017 as part of a Government decision to introduce a set of broader reforms to employment support schemes. The number of places available on RSS was also increased by 750 throughout 2017 and 2018. 

The rule change was introduced at a time when participation on RSS was increasing to ensure that places on the programme would continue to be made available to new candidates, while also helping to avoid any long-term dependency on RSS from existing participants. 

The six-year limit on RSS only applies to participants who joined the scheme after 1st February 2017. RSS participants who were already on the scheme at that date are not affected.  The first RSS participants who will  leave RSS based on the six-year rule will not take place until after February, 2023.   

I am fully committed to the future of the Community Employment and RSS schemes and will continue to support and improve the schemes for the benefit of both the participants and their communities, while ensuring that these placements are available for the current cohort of long term unemployed.

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