Job Schemes amount to exploitation- Feeley

Fianna Fáil Councillor has called for an urgent review of Jobbridge and related Schemes to ensure that young workers are not being exploited. Commenting in relation to recent cases brought to his attention he has called for Joan Burton TD, Minister for Social Protection and her Government Colleagues to instigate an urgent review of the Scheme. ‘In recent weeks a number of cases have been brought to my attention where people are clearly experiencing exploitation in that they are doing jobs that are clearly there and for which they are entitled to be paid. An unemployed person gets € 50 on-top of their normal payments to take up the position which involves essentially a normal working week.’ The Scheme is intended to offer an unemployed person the chance to gain experience but in many cases the persons involved are asked to take on full jobs for little or no pay. ‘These Schemes may be well intentioned but they are in fact an opportunity for exploitation and are used as massage the Unemployment Figures as a person on such a Scheme is not deemed to be Unemployed.’ Citing examples of abuse, Councillor Feeley referred to one case where a person was offered a position over 40 miles from where they were living and for which it would cost them a great deal more to make the trip daily. He also referred to another case where a person is getting only the € 50 per week a less than € 10 in Social Welfare Payments.