An external review of the JobBridge internship scheme is to be carried out after it was commissioned by the Department of Social Protection.
The scheme, which allows unemployed people to enter into internships while receiving a €50 bonus on their social welfare, was given a two-year trial back in 2011, but has been renewed year-on-year ever since.
The review, which is set to be ready by the end of next year, will inspect a number of aspects in the scheme including job offers at the end of the internships, as well as the intern's progression and development.
It will also examine the effect the scheme has had on employers, most notably whether it has influenced job losses of full-time staff, how the company currently hires staff, and whether interns are being treated as equally full-time staff members.
Since 2011 JobBridge has provided over 42,000 people internships, but has been on the end of a much criticism for the payment figures compared work carried out, the lack of employment offers at the end of internships, as well as displacing paid employment.
Via The Journal
