Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 March 2019
294. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of jobseekers who had sanctions applied as a result of failure to attend meetings and to avail of suitable education, training or development opportunities or specified employment programmes and schemes under the JobPath programme. [11033/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraPenalty rates were introduced as a means of encouraging jobseekers to engage with activation measures and co-operate with efforts of the Department to assist them in securing employment. The Department is committed, under Pathways to Work, to incentivise the take-up of activation opportunities, including implementing sanctions for failure to engage.
The legislation underpinning the application of penalty rates is provided for in the Social Welfare Act, 2010. JobPath providers and other contracted services cannot in any circumstances apply a penalty rate or recommend that a penalty rate be applied. Seetec and Turas Nua inform the Department of non-engagement with their service where a Deciding Officer of the Department then examines all the facts and circumstances of the case. Only then is a penalty rate applied if appropriate and in line with the legislation. Penalty rates can only be applied by a Deciding Officer of my Department in specific circumstances and not on foot of a recommendation from Seetec or Turas Nua.
In all cases where a JobPath customer has been penalty rated, full payment is restored immediately upon re-engagement with JobPath. When a penalty rate is applied a new appointment is scheduled to afford the Jobseeker an opportunity to engage.
Penalty rates are only applied as a last resort. If dissatisfied with any decision of the Deciding Officer, it is open to the Jobseeker to appeal to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office.
The total number of Jobseekers who engaged with JobPath since its inception until end of January 2019 was 205,184 and the total number of sanctions applied to Jobseekers who engaged with the service in the same period was 14,000. These sanctions may have been applied in a range of circumstances including failure to attend activation meetings and failure to avail of suitable education, training or development opportunities which were considered appropriate to the person’s circumstances.
I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
