Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 September 2025
408. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider funding and resourcing a national umbrella organisation for supported employment, to provide staff training, best practice standards, policy development and coordination between supported employment service providers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49700/25]
View answerMy Department is committed to working to remove barriers to employment for people with disabilities. The Intreo Employment Service (ES) provide a wide range of supports to assist jobseekers, including those with a disability, to find work. Intreo ES also provides recruitment advice and support for employers including information on recruitment and retention incentives.
Intreo ES offers a targeted but voluntary employment support service for people in receipt of a disability payment. This is an individualised service which includes advice on jobseeking, access to further education, training supports and referrals to employment support schemes. Intreo ES has recently expanded the provision of this service by ensuring that there is a Designated Disability Employment Personal Advisor (DDEPA) in each of the 62 Intreo Offices nationwide.
The Employability service is open to all people with disabilities including those recovering from injury or illness, aged between 18 and 65 who are jobready, eager to enter or return to the workplace and need the support of a Job Coach. The Employability service is now delivered nationwide across 23 Employability service locations. Employability sits within the Department’s existing framework of employment supports for people with disabilities and aligns with broader national strategies aimed at improving their participation and opportunities in the workforce.
My Department’s Employer Relations team also provides a range of supports and incentives to employers to recruit people with disabilities. Locally based Employer Relations Officers engage with employers to identify potential candidates for paid positions and traineeships. Recruitment events are regularly arranged at which potential employees can meet with employers to discuss opportunities.
The Department also encourages employers to sign up to the Employment and Youth Engagement Charter, a call to action for employers to commit to working with people with disabilities and other priority groups to build their knowledge, skills and experience to enhance their employability. To date, over 260 employers have signed up to the Charter commitments.
In July 2024, my Department launched a new scheme called Work and Access. This scheme offers seven supports to improve access in the workplace for people with a disability. Funding is available for communication supports, work equipment, workplace adaptations and training. Jobseekers, employees, self-employed people and employers may apply for supports both for the business premises and remote workplaces. In June 2025, I formally launched a reformed wage subsidy scheme together with the Taoiseach, Minister Foley and Minister of State Naughton. This scheme provides financial incentives for employers to employ a person with a disability.
People with disabilities can also avail of a range of employment support schemes like Work Placement Experience Programme, Community Employment, Tús, Jobsplus, Back to Education Allowance and Back to Work Enterprise Allowance.
Notwithstanding these improvements, the Government recognises that more must be done to support disabled people into employment. In the Programme for Government and the recently launched National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030, my Department commits to a number of priority actions to support people with disabilities to obtain or retain employment. These include, among others, media campaigns to increase awareness of supports, a review of the minimum hours requirement and examination of the payment rate for the Wage Subsidy Scheme and an expansion of successful programmes like WorkAbility, EmployAbility and Work and Access. We will advance those commitments over the lifetime of the Government and in light of available resources.
Any new initiative such as that proposed by the Deputy would sit within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality.
I trust that this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
