Tories hack away at another jobs lifeline
Experts who help work search are facing the axe
EXPERTS dedicated to helping unemployed and disabled Scots find work are being axed as a controversial Government scheme comes to an end.
Staff at Ingeus– who have operated the Work Programme in Scotland since 2011 – have been told about 40 per cent of jobs and 19 offices around the UK are at risk.
The announcement was made via a conference call this week.
It comes just two months after the Department for Work and Pensions announced that 20 Jobcentres in Scotland are to close or move.
Ingeus have calculated they have helped 40,000 Scots find jobs since the DWP introduced the scheme in 2011.
The Scottish Government will introduce their own Scottish Employability Service next year to directly replace the Work Programme north of the Border.
They say the £5million Work Able Scotland programme will help up to 1500 people with health conditions into work in the transitional period before the introduction of the new service.
Ingeus chiefs confirmed yesterday that there would be job losses, saying fewer staff would be needed to run “much smaller” replacement programmes.
But they would not give details of how their 120 staff and 11 offices in Scotland would be affected.
A source who told the Record of the Ingeus announcement called on Scotland’s Economy, Jobs and Fair Work Secretary Keith Brown to ensure more help for the unemployed.
The source said: “It’s appalling. These people are there to help unemployed people get back into work and now they are being thrown out of their jobs.”
Paul de Pellette, of Ingeus, said: “We are extremely proud to have helped nearly 40,000 unemployed and disabled people to find jobs.
“However, from the end of this month no new people will join the Work Programme.
“Right now, we are focused on minimising the impact of these changes where possible.”
The Work Programme was widely criticised in its early days after reports showed private firms hired to get the unemployed into work were missing basic targets.