[holding answer 11 June 2009]: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Mel Groves:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about what steps are being taken to ensure that former Woolworth employees are helped back into work. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Staff in almost all of Woolworths' 800 stores were offered support through our Rapid Response Service before the stores closed. This support included:
job search information, advice and guidance, supplemented by a comprehensive job kit, which covers, for example, how to find work, CV writing and interview preparation;
one to one and group advice on jobs available in the local labour market and on training opportunities to equip them to compete in sectors that are recruiting; and
practical advice on the benefits available while looking for alternative work, which included the issue of over 8,000 clerical claim packs to speed-up the claims process.
For those who claimed Jobseeker's Allowance, a new jobseeker interview was undertaken with an adviser to discuss and agree some realistic and achievable job goals and jobsearch activities that offered the best chance of success. As part of this, the adviser provided information about access to jobs and a range of recently enhanced opportunities to help improve job prospects and overcome things that may be making it harder to find work. This includes:
jobsearch support for people who are ready for work, but lack recent experience of current jobsearch channels and methods of recruitment;
similar support for customers with a professional or executive background, but provided by a specialist organisation offering expertise in white collar recruitment;
extra help for those people who need more intensive jobsearch support, for example individually tailored help with CVs, interview skills and job applications; and access to resources such as stationery and the Internet;
skills screening and access to provision where appropriate;
extra help through Personal Adviser caseloading for customers who are particularly disadvantaged in the labour market and unlikely to find work without more intensive support;
discretionary funding to help overcome immediate barriers to work;
access to vacancies made available through local employment partnerships;
help to pay costs for travelling to interviews; and
extra help for people with a health problem or disability, for example Access to Work, Work Step, Work Preparation and Job Introduction Scheme
Following the new jobseeker interview, ongoing support is provided through fortnightly jobsearch reviews, which are used to discuss what the customer is doing to find work and to see what further help, if any, is needed.
Even in the current economic climate, over three quarters of people leave Jobseeker's Allowance within six months. For those who do not, we provide more help through the recently announced six-month offer, which includes regular and frequent contact with a personal adviser to help plan and follow-though a course of action that will increase the chances of finding and keeping work. As part of this, the customer has access to a range of employment-related opportunities, including a job subsidy, help for those wishing to become self-employed, volunteering placements and full-time training.