I want to draw the Minister's attention to the cases of men who are deprived of benefit on the ground that they are not genuinely seeking work, so that he may make some inquiries as to the reasons for such decisions. In Dublin City there are unfortunately some thousands of men who get only a casual type of work. Men who are looking for a day's work on relief schemes may do odd jobs in the way of pulling a handcart and when these men look for unemployment insurance they get a reply saying that they are cut off from benefit under section so and so. When one reads this section, one finds that the man is cut off because he is not supposed to be genuinely seeking work. I want to know what can a man do, other than go to his local representative, visit half a dozen employers or go to the labour exchange and appeal for work? If the work is not there it is not his fault. I know of cases where men come to my door and to the doors of other members of the corporation or to the doors of Deputies for the city, imploring a letter of reference to enable them to get work or asking when the corporation will start some scheme. Although one does everything possible to get a man of that type work and although one may be prepared to give evidence to that effect, the man is turned down on the ground that he is not genuinely seeking work.
I ask the Minister is it not possible to be a little more lenient with the casual type of worker. There is no work for him until the State or the municipality provides work and these unfortunate people should not be dealt with so harshly. Would the Minister be good enough to make inquiries to ascertain the number of people who have been disqualified from benefit within any given period on these grounds? The sad part of it is that when they are told by a Government Department that they are not genuinely seeking work, the relieving officer of the Dublin Union will use that letter as a means of preventing a man from getting ordinary relief for his wife and family. There is nothing facing him then but the workhouse simply because a Government Department says that he is not genuinely seeking work. Yet the work is not there and I and my colleagues can only tell him that relief schemes will not start for the next two or three months. When he goes to the relieving officer he is told: "You are not genuinely seeking work and you are going to get no relief." I would ask the Minister to inquire into these cases with a view to getting some relaxation of the regulations in favour of these unfortunate people.