Work Placement Experience Programme - Employers
The Work Placement Experience Programme allows employers to host a jobseeker on a work experience placement and to help the jobseeker to build new skills and gain valuable work experience. The programme is targeted at jobseekers who are on certain social welfare payments for 6 months(156 days) and want to avail of training and work experience to re-engage with the job market.
Employers who Host a WPEP Participant will provide a placement for 6 months with the participant attending for work experience for 30 hours a week.
There is no cost to the Host /employer; the participant will be paid by the Department of Social Protection during their work placement. The WPEP payment will be €323 per week. No top-up payments to the Participant are permitted.
JobsPlus
The JobsPlus scheme gives you a financial incentive to employ someone who is unemployed.
If you employ someone who has been unemployed you may get a tax-free incentive of either €7,500 or €10,000 from the JobsPlus scheme. The money is paid monthly in arrears over a two-year period directly into your company’s bank account. Applicants must meet the JobsPlus requirements such as working at least 30 hours a week. You can submit an online application.
- Jobseekers under 30 years of age may be eligible if unemployed for 4 months in the past 6 months.
- Jobseekers over 30 years of age may be eligible if unemployed for 12 months in the past 18 months.
Note: Time spent on the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) and Work Placement Experience Programme (WPEP) counts towards JobsPlus participant eligibility.
Wage Subsidy Scheme
The Wage Subsidy Scheme gives financial incentives to private sector employers to employ people with a disability. The work offered must be for a minimum of 21 hours per week and the subsidy is available up to 39 hours per week.
An employee with a disability on the scheme has the same conditions of employment as other employees.
To find out more about the Wage Subsidy Scheme please visit Gov.ie
Redundancy
If your business has to make employees redundant, Intreo can help your workers to plan ahead with:
- support to access new job opportunities, and
- advice on education and training opportunities.
If you can’t afford to pay the statutory redundancy payment to employees, the Department of Social Protection can make a lump sum payment directly to the employees and then recover the debt from you through an agreed schedule of repayments. There is further information on the Redundancy Payments Scheme available on the gov.ie website.
