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Junior minister under fire over ‘no work, no benefits’ call

Shane McEntee’s suggestion that young people shouldn’t get welfare unless they join a work scheme has been labelled “hypocritical” by a youth group.

17/06/12 6,419 Views 42 Comments
A social welfare office in Finglas, Dublin
A social welfare office in Finglas, Dublin
Image: Julien Behal/PA Archive/Press Association Images

A JUNIOR MINISTER’S suggestion that young people should not receive welfare payments unless they are in a work scheme has been branded “hypocritical” by a youth organisation.

James Doorley, assistant director of the National Youth Council, said that the majority of unemployed young people would prefer to be in training or work experience, but there were simply not enough places available.

“Ireland currently has 70,000 young people [under 25] on the Live Register, and 27,000 of them have been there for a year or more,” he told TheJournal.ie.

The issue isn’t young people not wanting to take up training, it’s the Government failing to provide places. It’s a bit hypocritical for a Government minister to be criticising young people when the Government itself [has failed to act]. It’s not a one-way street.

Doorley was responding to comments made by McEntee, who told the Sunday Times: “No young person should be handed money to do nothing.”

He added that Ireland needed to return to a system where young people had to enter a work scheme in order to receive welfare payments.

McEntee’s comments came as social protection minister Joan Burton said “quite a number” of people have had their welfare payments reduced after refusing to accept “reasonable” job offers.

‘Oversubscribed’

But Doorley said McEntee’s proposal was only practical if placements were available. “We are constantly getting calls from young people saying training courses are oversubscribed,” he said.

The National Youth Council has previously called for the establishment of a scheme whereby any young person unemployed for six months or more would be guaranteed a place on a work experience or training scheme. However, Doorley said this would require significant extra Government funding.

Referring to the welfare system, Burton told RTÉ’s This Week: “The person who is unemployed has a responsibility to go back to work or back to education if possible. The Government has a responsibility [to support those people].”

Read: Airport and rent inspectors will be used to combat welfare fraud>

Column: Our welfare system is broken. We can fix it… by paying everybody>

About the author:

Michael Freeman
@michfreeman
michael@dailyedge.ie

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Comments (42 Comments)

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  • Barry O'Brien 17/06/12 #

    A few years ago when I was on the dole I was required to meet a FAS officer about schemes or I would lose my dole. I went to the meeting and was told that there was nothing to suit me and that my dole would continue. But fortunately I found a job soon after and have been employed since.

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    • On the Dole 17/06/12 #

      You see Barry that’s what people are met with time and time again. And highly paid ministers spouting same crap about people not working the number of jobs that’s needed just not there in my town anyway unemployment black spot ……

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    • more_willie_stroker 17/06/12 #

      Well paid ministers appoint well paid young personal assistants…any ideas who McEntee’s PA is?? Go on, have a guess… his daughter Helen McEntee. She is lucky that she is the daughter of a politician and doesn’t have to face the dole queues like the rest of the young plebs who face an uncertain future!

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    • Katriona Wallace 20/06/12 #

      You are lucky, well done and fair play to you. I, too met with a FAS officer, after 5mins discussion was told the same thing. This person then spent 15 mins talking about herself, the question on whether her job would be around after restructing of FAS etc. I left the room furious and disgusted. Never want anything more to do with FAS, if at all possible.
      If, you don’t mind me asking, how did you deal with the gap on your C.V., what did you say to the employer re unemployment?

      Reply
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    • Barry O'Brien 20/06/12 #

      Hi Katriona. I wasn’t out of college long and had been on contract work that ended. They seemed satisfied with that.

      Reply
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  • ged_star 17/06/12 #

    “No young person should be handed money to do nothing.”

    Shouldn’t it be the same for our useless TD’s

    Fecking waist of money every one of them

    Reply
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  • Seamus Ryan 17/06/12 #

    With regard to social welfare payments the old system allowed a person to leave school and sign on and get the same benefits as a person who has maybe paid taxes for years and has been made redundent through no fault of their own . Why is that fair? The whole welfare system is wrong. People complaining about having to pay 50 cent for a prescription. I know somebody who used to pay ?96 a month on tablets but now pays ?3 cause they have gotten a medical card. Specsavers free eyetest with medical card and designer glasses for ?20 which if you are working cost ?149. I was in a carpet shop last year and two drug addicts had a cheque for ?2000 for carpets and a cheque for ?2500 for power city to furnish their brand new flat all supplied by the state. I could on but id just loose the plot.

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  • Debbie McDonnell 17/06/12 #

    Why is that whenever there is a discussion about benefits it focuses on those who want to work but can’t because of bad government policies and poor training options? Lots of people who were capable of working in the good times but didn’t are still in the same position today, seemingly unchallenged?

    Time to stop trying to find the weakest links and focus on making entrepreneurship a more realistic option for those who are afraid to fail as they get nothing, update training courses to skills that are in demand in 2012 and learn to appreciate that those who can’t work and won’t work are two very different sectors and should be treated as such.

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    • rodrigo detriano 17/06/12 #

      This country is a KIP! The sooner the poor rise up and kick out the corrupt bastards that pretend they care, the better for everyone! Ireland needs to be cleansed from the top down!

      Reply
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    • On the Dole 17/06/12 #

      That’s too easy Debbie .

      Reply
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    • Katriona Wallace 20/06/12 #

      I agree Debbie. Most start-ups fail within the first year simply because it takes longer than that to establish a business. But that time isn’t given to the person. Mentoring and support is only available for the lucky few especially at the initial stages of getting a business off the ground. I have to say that my hat goes off to any brave sole trader in this country, the red -tape would drive a person bananas, yet people are determined to make their businesses functional. Figuring out VAT rates that apply to a start-up, would be enough to put anyone off.

      The government isn’t interested why people can’t get work or in the slightest bit keen to help that person to return to work, all they want to do it push everyone off the live register by any means possible. If this means demeaning all unemployed and making us look bad to achieve their objectives, then so be it. Yet if I want to get my C.V reviewed or go over interview skills my only option is to ask for help from strangers on LinkedIn, because I can’t afford to pay for it.
      TBH working was far easier than being on the dole!

      Reply
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  • Stephen Kearon 17/06/12 #

    There is merit in this idea, as going from school to ‘free money’ is wrong as leads to life long dependency.

    For those who don’t go on to third level, or enter employment then a form of civic based national service should be introduced

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  • Anne Kerins 17/06/12 #

    I can see why he is a junior minister, supply the jobs first, then you might be on more of a position to mouth off. God deliver us from the smug

    Reply
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  • John F 17/06/12 #

    Work for welfare should be mandatory for all able bodied/mind persons who have made no PAYE/PRSI contributions in the last 5yrs! Nothing for Nothing! There are people on the dole in this country 20+ years unchallenged for the most part. Time to cut loose the dead wood!

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  • Michael J Hartnett 17/06/12 #

    This really answers many if my questions about the culture of this country. Blame the woes of the country on the people especially the young the people least to blame for any of our problems. Corrupt misguided & niave is what these politicians are. The people of Ireland are killing themselves in their droves most of them young because of the sacrfices being made by them & I ask you sir what sacrifices have you made.

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  • Revolting Peasant 17/06/12 #

    more state sponsored ageism eh? as far as i knew, once an irish citizen reached 18 they are considered an adult by law, how come no one ever brought the state to court over the blatant discrimination in the irish welfare system? why is it the department believes a person under 25 can live on less, or a person under 21 on even less again?

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  • Damien 17/06/12 #

    So easy to criticise when you’re not in the same position!

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  • Paul 17/06/12 #

    The onslaught against the poor has just shifted up a gear. This, after last weeks ESRI report, is just the next step in demonising those unlucky enough to be unable to find work. They are laying the ground work for a full scale grubby attack in the budget. Shameless.

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  • Eilish Deegan 17/06/12 #

    It’s idiots like mcEntee that make such unrealistic decisions that frustratrate young people and not so young people.he is a disgrace.no jobs no course positions available and this fool saying to get a place

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  • Ben Gunn 17/06/12 #

    The principle is right. However, the problem will always be, if there is work that needs to be done then it should attract a fair wage. How can you ever ensure that work carried out to obtain benefits is not at the expense of a paid job?

    It is not the job of the benefits system to subsidise employers.

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  • Martin Grehan 17/06/12 #

    State colluding with business to provide cheap labour again. Include a work provision with all welfare payments after all welfare payments are the average industrial wage….oh wait, that’d just be employment then :)

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    • Paul Mallon 17/06/12 #

      Like the government said, they want to make Ireland a great place to do business.

      Reply
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    • Revolting Peasant 17/06/12 #

      well i dont know if you are working or not, but i am on the dole and would have no problem working for it, theres more to it than just payment, theres also the dignity of being a constructive member of society, i seriously wish the government would start a program of building cycle lanes and good public amenity areas all over the country, now while they have the idle hands to do it, nothing is more satisfying than to improve your own physical enviornment

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    • Martin Grehan 17/06/12 #

      Exactly, nothing attracts business more than cheap labour and lack of labour rights.

      Reply
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    • Revolting Peasant 17/06/12 #

      well said Martin

      Reply
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    • Martin Grehan 17/06/12 #

      But why should you be paid €200 quid a week for work that you deserve a good wage for? And I completely agree, we should have huge public work schemes to get people back working. But it should be for a decent wage and with no veiled threats or coercion behind it. And it should definitely not be in the private sector.

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    • Brian Sheehan 17/06/12 #

      Exactly, why the feck would anyone need benifits of they have a job paying a decent living wage. This is just another part of the plan to put anyone on Social Welfare into indentured servitude.

      Reply
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    • Revolting Peasant 17/06/12 #

      there are any amount of different approaches to it, for example how about just 2 days work for the payment? its roughly equivalent to a low paying job, my point is thats its better to be busy, very easy to sink into negativity and apathy when you have nothing to do, my suggestion for improving local environment is not working to enrich an employer, its making your area nicer for you and your family, why not?

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    • limofax 17/06/12 #

      Naturally it was a Fine Gael (fail) minister that comes out with this shite.

      Reply
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    • Susie Chester 17/06/12 #

      ,……. because the government do not want us to work for Ireland , they want us to work for the great corporations of the world …………
      They do not want us to have a nice life with a livable income and workers rights . They want us to work in sweat shops and have no disposable income …. no rights and become slaves to the corporations…….Life is cheap , there is notyhing more disposable and more easily replacable than human life ……..
      You may think I am being dramatic but look back over the past 4 years …

      Reply
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    • Susie Chester 17/06/12 #

      Martin Grehan
      If this failed government were serious about jobs and the economy of course theyb would have huge public work schemes to regenerate the economy. But they dont want that . They want poverty for us. But I do agree with you ,they have no clue and their loyalty to us Irish People has been called into question so many times now.

      Reply
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    • john mack 17/06/12 #

      I was going to post that “a strike was going to called but Paddy powers and sky sports would go out of business” but after read RP post it would be in bad taste. RP makes very good sense and if I was an employer I would look kindly at RP from a positive attitude. what work field would suit.

      Reply
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  • Adam Magari 17/06/12 #

    It is a sensible suggestion. However, not everyone unemployed is actually employable. Attitude, temperament, punctuality, etc. very important in working with others and especially if meeting customers. It can be frustrating in the extreme dealing with unpunctual types. Big companies can run induction days, but in these times few small businesses could spare the staff for that.

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  • Ciara Ní Mhurchú 17/06/12 #

    How can so many migrants get employment here in jobs that dont require a third level education and yet our own unskilled are staying on the dole instead of doing these jobs?
    There are jobs out there, just look at nixers.ie. Ive seen jobs advertised in shop windows, its rare you see an irish person working in shops and hospitality. Are those jobs beneath us now?

    Reply
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    • Katriona Wallace 20/06/12 #

      Because they are not paid the full minimum wage and employers want docile employees who don’t know their rights.
      I got, what I thought was a job in a B&B. It lasted one week, not because I left but the owner didn’t want to pay employer tax for me (she told me this) and I’d to round down my wage to get paid at all. She let 6 other staff go after me. There was a mixture of Irish and non-Irish staff, but the Irish staff told me that the non-Irish get paid cash in hand. And this is not necessarily the fault of the staff either.

      Reply
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  • Leslie Alan Rock 17/06/12 #

    Well then tell Merkel to f*** o** and invest the money here. Then people will have work and won’t have to sign on.

    Reply
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  • Edna Kenny 17/06/12 #

    Dear Friends,
    I think we might have to get Mr. Wilberforce on the case!
    Yours blah blah slave labour etc……..
    Edna Kenny.

    Reply
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  • Dotty_Ouch 18/06/12 #

    these people are living on another bloody planet as far as i can tell…

    as in the government loons who constantly splurge out any twaddle as far as unemployment goes..

    half the schemes are rubbish and as for handing money out for nothing have any of those politicians tried to live on what they offer ….. cost of food accomodation basics day to day travel etc…

    pure toss…

    again the minority’s are made to suffer along with the usual prejudices by those who claim they have the publics and unemployeds interests at heart.

    they say theyre investing in businesses and education… how so when the college fees are astronomical and only the privelleged or those who are working can afford to pay…

    id ask kenny and gilmore and burton to swap a lifestyle for a week and see from another perspective…
    better yet lads go out on the streets for a week and get a bit of reality and see how it really is for some…

    Reply
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