1,800 have welfare cut after failing to take job

More than 1,800 welfare claimants have had payments cut for failing to take up job or education offers from state agencies.

The figures emerge as other unemployed people face having their dole payments cut if they fail to take up local authority work, as part of a budget initiative announced last month.

It is hoped that thousands of welfare claimants who have basic construction skills or building experience but are unemployed will take up the new roles with local authorities over the coming months.

But failure to take up the posts — which pay claimants €50 extra on top of their welfare — will see payments reduced.

The job offers are being planned as new figures obtained by the Irish Examiner show that over 1,807 welfare claimants have had amounts reduced since mid-2011 for refusing to accept job offers or education opportunities.

Claimants who refused to take up offers were docked payments, with reductions of up to €44 per week.

Social Protection Minister Joan Burton announced in the budget that she hoped to allocate 10,000 new jobs to the unemployed, many of which would be through work placement schemes.

These include 2,500 JobBridge places, 2,500 places on the Tús scheme, an additional 2,000 community employment scheme places, as well as the 3,000 places in local authority social employment schemes.

The 3,000 jobs with local authorities are expected to focus on construction and engineering type positions.

Department of Social Protection officials have met with the City & County Managers Association to help identify the number of jobs in different counties.

But if they do not take up offers, the welfare claimants will likely also see their jobseekers benefit or allowance payments cut.

The department introduced arrangements in Apr 2011 whereby the rate of payment to jobseekers may be reduced in circumstances where they fail to engage with the National Employment Action Plan, or if they refuse a training offer.

Under the measure, a penalty of up to €44 per week applies to an individual’s jobseeker payment.

In total, 352 jobseeker payments were reduced in 2011, and 1,455 jobseeker payments were reduced in 2012.

In a statement, the department justified the decision to cut welfare payments for non-cooperating claimants.

“The objective of this measure is to encourage people to attend interviews, undertake training and take up employment opportunities. Basically, there is a right to a payment but also a matching responsibility on the unemployed person to engage with the system.”