STRONG STATE INTERVENTION NEEDED ON JOBS CRISIS

2 Sep 2009

The continued rise in the jobless numbers shows clearly that Government measures are just not working, according to Congress Assistant General Secretary Sally Anne Kinahan.

Responding to the latest rise in jobless numbers to 12.4 percent, Ms Kinahan said it was extremely worrying that Ireland has experienced the fastest rise in the Eurozone.

"We are falling further than any other EU country, which means it will take us far longer to climb out of this recession. While some countries show signs of growth, we continue to hemorrhage jobs," she said.

"Yet Government continues to treat the jobless crisis as some sort of seasonal blip, instead of the national emergency it actually is. To date, their measures have been too little and always too late. Nothing introduced so far even grasps the scale of this problem.

"Across Europe - in Germany, the Netherlands, France, Hungary, Portugal, Slovenia, Switzerland and Finland - governments have intervened strongly in the labour market to keep people in work and upgrade their skills

"Germany alone has kept 1.25m people in work through on state-supported short-term working," Ms Kinahan said.

She also expressed concern over the fall in those seeking Jobseekers' Benefit.

"There were 2,622 less people claiming this benefit in August, as compared to July, following the Government decision to cut eligibility from 15 to 12 months after which a strict qualifying test kicks in. Have these 2,622 people become victims of this cut?

"If so, Government has compounded its inertia by punishing the victims and making the jobless pay for the crisis," Ms Kinahan concluded.

 

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