Historically Ireland has been very strategic in its use of EU funding. Following the large scale redundancies in DELL Limerick, funding was secured under the European Globalisation Fund (EGF) for the first time. The EGF is utilized to provide a range of active labour market measures including;
- Job-search assistance,
- Occupational guidance,
- Education and Accredited Training
Latterly, in the Irish Case it has included the use of back to work programmes specifically the Community Employment Scheme (CE).
The purpose of this research is to determine the success of CE as a labour market activation measure under the European Globalisation Fund. In determining its success a number of key factors will need to be considered including whether CE meets participant's needs and achieves desired outcomes in terms of labour market activation. It will identify and examine the key influencing factors in successful transitioning from CE to work and examine to what extent transitioning to employment can be attributed to participation on the programme. The study will also explore whether the use of CE ensures value for money to the EGF while also assessing the outcomes and associated costs of using the CE programme as compared to other options for labour market activation utilized under the programme.
Ultimately the study will determine whether as a labour market activation mechanism, CE provides a strong implementation tool for future Irish EGF applications