Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 9 Jul 1992

Vol. 422 No. 5

Adjournment Debate. - Social Welfare Voluntary Work Scheme.

Mr. Ferris

This issue is of fundamental importance to many people, particularly those in receipt of unemployment assistance. These people are glad to be able to help in their local community on a voluntary basis. However, under the Social Welfare Acts, they have to immediately discontinue this voluntary work once paid work becomes available.

In the past the Department of Social Welfare operated a voluntary work scheme which was reasonably successful. I have made representations to the Department in recent weeks about a specific case. If I have the time, I will refer to other cases. This case involves a girl who, under a FÁS scheme, worked as a secretary in St. Michael's girls school in Tipperary town. She built up a relationship with the teachers and pupils during her time in the school. At the end of her course she was obliged to sign on for unemployment assistance. The school asked her if she would work with them on a voluntary basis to help raise funds which they badly needed as a result of the restrictions imposed by the Department of Education. She would have been involved in fund raising, charity work, etc. Because this girl was in receipt of unemployment assistance she decided that she would notify the local office of the Department of Social Welfare as to her plans. During an interview with an officer of the Department she stated what she wanted to do and was told that it would be quite in order but that it would be some three weeks before written approval would issue. By that time the project for the school would be over. The girl, in the belief that she was doing everything correctly, worked voluntarily in collecting funds for the school, always on the understanding that she would be available for work as required.

She made her claim for unemployment assistance during that period and was refused on the basis that she was not available for work. I made representations and produced documentary evidence from the school that she had worked in a voluntary capacity and was not compensated for her work. I have given the Minister the reference number so that he can check the file containing my representations to confirm that she was available and that the work was voluntary. The reply I received this morning from the Department confirms that this lady was employed on a voluntary basis at St. Michael's girls school but the reply goes on to state, contradictorily, that this employment is not considered voluntary under the social welfare voluntary work scheme.

That is one case. There is another case in Monard where an unemployed person with a family took part in a project in the local hall. Everybody in the community, including the parish priest, was helping. The person to whom I refer was discovered by a social welfare officer to be working voluntarily in a parochial hall and benefit was disallowed completely on the usual basis that evidence was not produced. There is an anomaly in the scheme.

I am arguing the case that the girl in question was told by an officer of the Department that the work in which she proposed to engage would be accepted as voluntary. She was then notified in writing that it was not. We should have a positive response in this case.

Minister for Social Welfare (Mr. McCreevy)

I will first outline the voluntary work option scheme and then deal with the case to which the Deputy refers. The voluntary work option scheme allows unemployed persons who engage in voluntary work within the State to continue to receive their unemployment payments provided they continue to satisfy the statutory conditions of being available for and genuinely seeking work.

The objectives of the scheme are twofold: to make opportunities available to the unemployed to become involved in voluntary work and encourage voluntary bodies to involve the unemployed as much as possible in their existing activities and to create new opportunities for voluntary work. If an unemployed person wishes to take up voluntary work or a voluntary agency wishes to take on an unemployed person, the contact point is the local social welfare office. The unemployed person completes an application form which is also completed by the voluntary organisation.

A number of factors are taken into account by a deciding officer in determining whether the work involved is voluntary within the meaning of the scheme and whether a claimant would continue to satisfy the conditions for the receipt of unemployment assistance/benefit. These factors include the aims and standing of the voluntary organisation, the nature of the work involved, the weekly hours worked and the amount of any payment received by way of out-of-pocket expenses. The deciding officer must be satisfied that the unemployed person is not doing work which would normally warrant payment and liability for PRSI and that he or she remains available for and is actively seeking employment while engaged in voluntary work.

While it is not possible to lay down hard and fast rules as to what constitutes voluntary work, the position in most cases should be clear. Examples would be assisting the old, the ill or the handicapped in their homes or in institutions. It may also involve working with community-based groups such as local development associations, residents associations, sports/youth clubs, cultural organisations or church groups. Ideally the nature of the voluntary work should benefit the unemployed person in terms of developing social skills and work preparation which would be of assistance in securing paid employment and would also benefit the community as a whole. Under no circumstances, however, can the scheme be used in respect of work normally undertaken by a paid employee. I am sure Deputy Ferris and his colleagues would agree with that.

In regard to the case raised by the Deputy, the person concerned was in receipt of unemployment assistance up to 9 June 1992, when she applied for the voluntary work option with a local school. The employment concerned was not considered voluntary within the terms of the scheme for the following reasons: a national or secondary school would not be considered to be a voluntary organisation; the secretarial work involved was not considered to be voluntary work as it is normally done by a paid employee.

I regret that, due to an oversight, the person concerned was not paid her entitlement to unemployment assistance for the period 10 June to 19 June 1992. I have arranged that she will be paid her arrears for this period shortly. She continues to be in receipt of a weekly rate of unemployment assistance of £55.

The Deputy has raised a point which is not known to my Department, the fact that the girl was involved in fund raising activities. That information was not available to the deciding officer, who was of the opinion that she was to be involved in secretarial duties. She participated in social assistance schemes in that school for two non-consecutive yearly periods, doing secretarial work. I will check whether fund raising could be construed as voluntary activity. The information given to the Department was that this girl was going back to the school to do secretarial work, which is what she had been doing in the past.

I will have the matter checked out for the Deputy and contact him as soon as I can.