The Government and several multinational technology companies in the Republic will today unveil a major training and jobs initiative for 3,500 people currently outside the high-tech sector. The move will be presented as part of the battle against long-term unemployment, the technology sector skills shortage and rising payroll costs.
Industry sources said last night the initiative was modelled on the successful Ballymun Jobs Project in Dublin. This scheme focused on people who had little or no knowledge of information technology, offered them training to a high level and then found them work in the many multinational software and hardware companies operating in the city.
"The point is to target the initiative at people who have so far been completely outside the Celtic Tiger. They will do recognised courses, reach recognised standards and presumably the companies will then be queuing up to employ them," one source said.
The new project would be remarkable because of its large scale, the sources said, as well as the heavyweight, international companies that would back it from the start.
Among the technology firms set to take their places alongside the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, at today's launch at Government Buildings are Intel, IBM and Microsoft. Some of the companies have pledged hardware, such as PCs and printers, others software programs, while one firm has agreed to allow the project be run from its Dublin-area campus.
Ms Harney has said repeatedly she does not accept the notion that unemployed people cannot be taught new skills - today's initiative would appear to be in line with her policy of intensive retraining for those who cannot find work.
The move should also go some way to reducing the skills gap in the technology sector. In recent months, more and more high-tech companies have voiced complaints that they cannot find sufficient numbers to staff Irish plants. Earlier this week, the head of the software giant Corel, Dr Mike Cowpland, said in an interview with The Irish Times said: "We can't get people fast enough in the Dublin office."
Another important element for the companies backing the scheme is their desire to increase the supply of labour available to them, which they hope will keep wages down. Many complain in private that Irish workers, who would once accept lower than normal salaries, are now in a position to demand pay increases.
