Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 22 March 2022
582. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Social Protection the actions that her Department has taken to implement the relevant recommendations from the Joint Committee on Key Issues Affecting the Traveller Community report issued in November 2021. [14012/22]
View answerI welcome the publication of the Report of the Joint Committee on Key Issues Affecting the Traveller Community (‘the Report’). It contains a number of recommendations for the Department of Social Protection with the objective of improving employment outcomes for members of the Traveller community.
I am keenly aware of the high levels of unemployment among members of the Traveller community and the need to take concrete steps to support the labour market participation of this community. In this regard, Pathways to Work 2021-2025, the national employment services strategy, was launched in July 2021, and includes targeted measures that closely align with the Report’s recommendations, such as to:
- Engage with community representative bodies to produce Traveller specific employment service engagement tools, due in Q4 2022;
- Consult with stakeholders from the Traveller community to advise the Public Employment Service, due in Q2 2022; and,
- Further develop specific Community Employment schemes for Travellers and Roma, due in Q4 2023.
The Report by the Joint Committee recommends developing a comprehensive national Traveller employment action plan. This is also a commitment in Pathways to Work and my officials are closely engaging with Traveller representative groups from the National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy Employment Sub-Group in this regard.
In line with the Report’s recommendation that participants who are far from the labour market should be allowed to remain on Community Employment (CE), the Deputy may be aware that the eligibility criteria have been relaxed for members of the Traveller community. Ordinarily, to be eligible for CE, participants must be over 21 and in receipt of a relevant payment for 12 months or more. However, Travellers aged 18 or over, in receipt of Jobseeker’s Allowance for any length of time, can avail of CE.
Improving the labour market outcomes of disadvantaged groups is a key aim of the Government’s Pathways to Work strategy. I welcome the recommendations from the Report, which aligns with this effort, and my officials are examining how best to implement the full range of recommendations. By working on a whole of Government basis, and in conjunction with Traveller representative groups, the commitments set out above will work to support meaningful change and enhanced employment prospects for the Traveller community in Ireland.
