Two Offaly Job Clubs announce their closure at end of December

Two job clubs in Offaly are to close their doors at the end of December as a new Regional Employment Service is to be created to replace existing services.

Job Clubs provide a service to assist jobseekers to enter or re-enter employment through the provision of individualised supports, a ‘drop in’ service, CV preparation and formal workshops.

Staff at the Birr Job Club, Catherine Greig and Celine England, announced "with a heavy heart" on Facebook that they will be closing their doors on December 31, following a decision by the Department not to renew its Job Club contract.

“The Department of Social Protection has decided that Birr Job Club will no longer receive a contract to provide our services to people in Birr and the surrounding communities," the post continued.

"We have provided an open door, wrap-around service and welcomed everyone, assisting and supporting them in gaining employment, further training and education, providing information and guidance since November 1999.

“Both Celine and I are grateful to have had the opportunity to work here and to play an important role in our local community.

“We want to thank everyone that we have worked with, past and present clients, employers, colleagues and local agencies for using the service of the Job Club and hope that we were able to guide you in the right direction. We wish all of you the very best of luck in the future.”

Similarly, the Tullamore Job Club will also be closing its doors at the end of the year, with staff members Majella Finlay and Claire Garvey saying they are "extremely saddened" about the closure.

“It is out of our hands now. We have met with some wonderful people over the years and we would like to thank each and every one of you for making our job so enjoyable."

The Department of Social Protection issued a request for tender in May to expand local employment services in Offaly and six other counties where a Local Employment Service (LES) does not exist.

Independent Laois-Offaly TD Carol Nolan is calling on the Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys to review plans for the new service, and said "the recent history of handing over job support or local employment measures to private companies has been disastrous."

“This is a scandalous decision and it must be urgently reconsidered," she said.

"Unfortunately, Birr Job Club is now following foul along with many other local Jobs Clubs to a policy decision of the Department that prioritises the privatisation of these community services.

"I raised these matters with the Minister in May, along with the trade union body SIPTU, who had also organised a protest outside the Departments offices that called on the Minister to establish a stakeholder forum to resolve the issue."

Nolan said that the model proposed by government must be resisted as "it is dreadful value for money, but more importantly, because it simply does not offer the kind of local and person-centred service that many unemployed people need and want."

"People do not want impersonal and heartless ‘employment activation’ companies standing over them.

"These are companies that see unemployed people as little more than numbers without any of the appreciation of how complex it can be to manage employment and other life commitments,” she finished.

The Irish Local Development Network (ILDN) representing Ireland’s Local Employment Service (LES) providers, has pointed to a newly published report by economist Jim Power which suggests that the new model for the provision of community based employment services is not likely to prove viable for charitable not-for-profit companies unless significantly altered.

Martina Earley, Chair of the ILDN Special Committee on the Future of Employment Services, said: "Local Employment Services have been successfully delivering not-for-profit community based employment services for all people out of work for over 25 years.

"The Jim Power report clearly outlines that the Department’s proposed replacement model will not be viable in the main for current Local Employment Services providers. The Department need to revisit their approach urgently to avert the loss of hundreds of well qualified professional staff and dozens of offices.”

Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys said in July that it was "wrong to look at this tender as a move away from a not-for-profit model to a payment-by-results model."

"It is absolutely client-focused, with a strong focus on local services, community linkages and client service levels and outcomes."

She said it is wrong to say that privatisation is taking place and that all relevant stakeholders, including the ILDN, had been briefed.