Environment Minister Phil Hogan recently announced that at least 25% of the 1,600 jobs created directly by Irish Water’s domestic water metering programme will be given to people from small local businesses, the unemployment register and school leavers, graduates and apprentices. The metering programme starts in July 2013 and will run until September 2016, during which time over one million meters will be installed in homes across the country.
The Minister said:
“Irish Water’s metering programme is an ambitious plan by international standards. This programme will create up to 2,000 jobs with a particular focus on ensuring that skilled workers are given an opportunity to re-enter the workforce and for small businesses to benefit.
Irish water will install 27,000 meters per month, which is a challenging target but deliverable by having local crews working on the ground. The commitment is to focus on developing a world class national water infrastructure that meets the needs of a growing population in a socially inclusive and sustainable manner.”
The Irish Water metering programme will create up to 2,000 jobs including 1,600 on the ground installing meters and 400 in Irish Water’s call centre supporting the programme.
The social inclusion commitment will form part of the regional management contractor’s contracts and will include requirements that at least:
- 10% of people working on the metering programme will be drawn from SMEs
- 10% from the unemployment register
- 5% will be apprentices, graduates or school leavers.
This article featured on the Jobs In Horticulture website, www.jobsinhorticulture.ie, on March 11th 2013
http://www.jobsinhorticulture.ie/news/13284-irish-water-jobs-to-give-skilled-workers-opportunity-to-re-enter-workforce-hogan.html