The Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, has reassured people getting Jobseeker’s Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance from the Department of Social Protection that if they get temporary work over the Christmas period their Jobseeker’s payment will be reinstated without delay when they finish work.
The Minister said: “People getting a Jobseeker’s payment should not have any concerns about their payment being restored after a period of temporary work. Where a person who is getting Jobseeker’s Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance takes up temporary work or avails of a short-term training course for up to eight weeks, my Department will temporarily suspend their claim so that it can be reinstated without delay when the work or training finishes.”
A customer who is in receipt of either of these two payments and who receives an offer of temporary employment or a training course should contact his/her local social welfare office and provide it with the relevant details of the work or course that he/she is undertaking. Similarly, he/she should contact the local social welfare office without delay when the course or employment finishes.
Minister Burton has urged employers who need temporary staff to contact any one of her Department’s network of offices where staff will make every effort to help the employer to get suitable job-ready people to fill their vacancies. Employers will receive a quality service including the referral of skilled people and information on a range of incentives to assist employers in developing their businesses, for example, the Employer Job Incentive (PRSI ) scheme, Revenue Job Assist, and the JobBridge internship scheme.
The Minister said: “The period between now and Christmas is a very busy one for many employers and they may need to take on extra staff for a short time. The improvements which are now in place in the Department of Social Protection will help these employers find jobseekers from the live register and employ them as temporary workers for up to eight weeks without it affecting social welfare entitlements when the work ceases. Jobseekers who take on temporary work of up to eight weeks will not lose out on any secondary benefits when they resume claiming their jobseeker’s payment after temporary work.”
