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Social Protection Minister Joan Burton today presented certificates to graduates of the Advantage Programme in Retail Skills and Warehousing Skills. The Advantage Programme is the result of a collaboration between the Department of Social Protection, Tesco Ireland, Skillnets and Coláiste Dhúlaigh, all of whom have been involved in delivering the training programme.

A total of 36 young people aged from 18 to 24 years participated in the Advantage Programme which consisted of two individual training programmes; one in Retail Skills Training and one in Warehouse Skills Training. Participants graduating today will be receiving a FETAC level 4 minor award for each of the modules covered.

Congratulating the graduates, Minister Burton said:

Your hard work and dedication during the six week programme has ensured that you are receiving awards in Retail Skills and in Warehousing Skills today. Your commitment, motivation and enthusiasm have not gone unnoticed by those you engaged with in the Tesco Stores, the Distribution Centre and in the classroom. The fact that 11 of you now have jobs in Tesco Ireland is proof of that.

For those of you who are not yet in employment, my Department will continue to work you to help you find jobs. The retail sector is Ireland’s largest employer with over one-quarter of a million people and it has a presence in every single town in the country. You now have a quality assured, nationally and internationally recognised qualification and very practical and transferable work experiences which reflect the needs of the retail industry.

The Minister explained that employer support and engagement is critical to tackling unemployment. The Department of Social Protection now has a dedicated division to engage with employers and help them find recruits from the Live Register. The partnership between Government, industry and training is another approach in helping jobseekers to get back to work.