Grant for hiring the unemployed

TOURISM and retail businesses will be able to get a subsidy from the Government for hiring seasonal workers – when they take someone off the dole queue.

Employers will get a cash refund every month for up to two years of €1 in every €4 of the cost of taking on someone who is long-term unemployed.

The plan is intended to encourage employers to take on extra staff, while also getting the long-term unemployed back to work.

The new Jobs Plus scheme is to be launched today by Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Jobs Minister Richard Bruton.

The move is aimed at creating new jobs, but also boosting the chances of the long-term unemployed to get back to work.

The level of subsidy will depend on how long the worker has been on the dole – with an added incentive for taking on those unemployed for more than two years.

The refund will be paid by the Department of Social Protection and is intended to operate in as simple a manner as possible.