JobsPlus scheme may be retooled to benefit older people

The Government’s JobsPlus scheme could be retooled to benefit older long-term unemployed people, with a report finding the group was underrepresented and less likely to succeed in staying off the Live Register.

The report’s findings chime with comments made by Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty, in which she said there was a “real challenge” in getting older people back into the labour market.

A recently-published focused policy assessment of the JobsPlus employment incentive scheme, conducted by the Department of Social Protection, looked at how it operated from July 2013 up until the end of last year and found it had some notable successes, including that more than 12,000 people who were long-term unemployed had gained employment through the scheme.