Government figures assessing the success of its welfare-to-work programme show the main target has been missed.
Firms and charities are paid to help find jobs for the long-term unemployed in the hope of helping 2.4m people.
But official figures showed only 3.53% of people found a job for six months or more - missing the 5.5% target.
Ministers said it was "early days" and the programme was succeeding in getting people off benefits and into work.
The figures, which cover the 13 months from June 2011 to July 2012, showed that of the 878,000 people who joined the programme, only 31,000 found a job for 6 months or more.
The Department for Work and Pensions had told providers they should get 5.5% of people on the programme into sustained employment.
'Snapshot picture'End QuoteThe work programme was part of what ministers called a revolution in welfare "
BBC political editor Nick Robinson said failing to hit the target meant "as many unemployed are getting sustainable jobs as if the work programme had never existed".
The DWP said more than half of the jobseekers who started on the programme in June and July 2011 had spent some time off benefits.
Employment minister Mark Hoban said: "It's still early days, but already thousands of lives are being transformed."
"One in four people have been in work, more than half of the early starters have been off benefit and performance is improving.
"Previous schemes paid out too much up front regardless of success but, by only paying providers for delivering results, the work programme is actually offering the taxpayer real value for money.
"Clearly these figures only give a snapshot picture as we're one year in, and the work programme offers support to claimants for two years, but these results are encouraging and something providers can look to build on."
Poorly performing organisations involved in the programme have been given until April to improve their performance.
The Employment Related Services Association, the trade body for the welfare-to-work industry, said 20,000 jobseekers were being helped each month. More than 200,000 have found employment since the scheme's launch, it added.
Labour leader Ed Miliband said the work programme was turning out to be a "miserable failure".
He said: "It is just not working. What we've seen from the government is a failure to reform welfare."
Under the scheme - replacing the New Deal, Employment Zones and Pathways to Work - approved providers in England, Scotland and Wales, mostly private companies, try to find work for claimants on a payment-by-results basis.
Providers can earn between £3,700 and £13,700 per person helped into work, depending how hard it is to give support to an individual, with an initial payment of between £400 and £600.
The government has said it expects the scheme to help 2.4m people back into work over five years.
Joining the work programme is mandatory for people aged over 25 when they have been out of work for a year and under-25s after nine months. Some younger people in certain circumstances, like young offenders, must join after a shorter period of time.
People on some benefits, such as income support and employment support allowance, can join the scheme voluntarily if they meet certain criteria.
Once a person has been referred to the work programme, they remain on the scheme for up to two years.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Work programme misses job target
Dengan url
http://beritaberbagiceria.blogspot.com/2012/11/work-programme-misses-job-target.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Work programme misses job target
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Work programme misses job target
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar