Firms hit by JobBridge ban will not be named

Companies banned from taking interns via the JobBridge scheme will not be named and shamed in case it discourages other firms from taking part, a minister has revealed.

The employers have been blacklisted by the Government after it emerged they were not providing “quality internships” or workplace mentoring.

However, Social Protection Minister of State Kevin Humphreys insisted he could not name the offending firms because “we want people to participate in the scheme”.

Mr Humphreys said that companies could be discouraged if the blacklisted employers were named, and that freedom of information rules also tied the Government’s hands.

“We are trying to encourage employers to be involved and this is a voluntary commitment,” Mr Humphreys told RTÉ.

Mr Humphreys said that with 14,000 employers taking part in the initiative, the number of blacklisted firms represented just 0.3%.

The minister defended the scheme, saying that the Social Protection department had carried out 7,800 inspections to ensure that interns were receiving the proper work experience on their placements.

The minister said that 61% of the people who took part in JobBridge went into proper employment following the placement.

A number of opposition TDs have condemned the scheme as leaving people open to “exploitation” by employers as the Government wants to use it to “massage” the unemployment figures.