Vol. 470 No. 4
37 Mr. J. Walsh asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the number of persons who have benefited under the Jobstart scheme; the cost of the scheme to date; and the proposals, if any, he has to encourage greater participation in this scheme in order that the number of long-term unemployed may be reduced. [18562/96]
Jobstart, which was launched at the end of May was introduced by this Government as one of the measures which set out to combat the difficulties faced by the long-term unemployed in getting back to work
Under the Jobstart programme employers are encouraged to look positively at hiring an unemployed person by providing a direct cash subsidy. Employers are paid a recruitment subsidy of £80 per week for one year when filling new or existing vacancies with persons who are unemployed for more than three years. Also, workers employed under Jobstart may retain eligibility for secondary social welfare benefits subject to an income limit of £250 per week.
As Jobstart has only been in existence for a short time, it is too early to make any pronouncement on its success or otherwise. Past experience has shown that recruitment incentives require a lead-in time before becoming established. While I am disappointed with the take-up to date, I have taken steps to raise the profile of Workplace and improve the promotion of the scheme on the ground by actions such as advertising regional promotions.
In an effort to boost participation in Jobstart, I met last week the various employer organisations, including IBEC, ISME and the SFA, and with ICTU and the INOU, to discuss how best they could assist in promoting this programme. All of these organisations reaffirmed to me their full support for the programme and agreed on a range of further measures to promote it.
As of 11 October, 1996, 346 jobs have been approved for Jobstart with 222 participants recruited. At the end of September, the cost of the programme was £198,895.
