Regional employer recruitment incentive - all ages

PLEASE NOTE - GRANT MUST BE AGREED PRIOR TO COMMENCEMENT OF EMPLOYMENT

Funding Available

The ERI can be utilised in several ways such as for additional supervisory costs, training, initial travel to work costs, specialist in work support or wages. No single use is prescribed.

The funding available through this incentive is up to a maximum of £7,000 dependent on number of contracted hours.

• A part time job between 16 -24 contracted hours paid at an hourly rate between the National Minimum Wage and the Real Living Wage may be eligible for grant up to a maximum of £3,000.
• A part time job between 16 – 24 contracted hours paying Real Living Wage or above may be eligible for grant up to a maximum of £3,500.
• A full-time job 25+ contracted hours paying an hourly rate between National Minimum Wage and Real Living Wage may be eligible for a grant up to a maximum of £6,000.
• A full-time job 25+ contracted hours paying Real Living Wage or above may be eligible for a grant of up to a maximum of £7,000.

This will be paid through instalments based on the following milestones:

For Companies paying employees the Real Living Wage throughout whole period, an additional claim for £1000 for full time contracted hours or £500 for part time contracted hours may be made at 26 weeks sustained employment.

Should a participant fail to reach the milestones of sustained employment, payment will be pro rata according to number of weeks sustained. Grants cannot be approved for participants who have started a job prior to an application being submitted and approved by East Dunbartonshire Council unless with prior agreement.

Eligibility Information

Employer Eligibility for Recruitment Incentive

• Can only be provided to Employers for the benefit of participants who meet the eligibility criteria, and who have been offered a sustainable job within the company.
• The sustainable job must be a new job that would not have been created without access to the Recruitment Incentive; funding cannot be used to create a job to cover sickness, maternity leave or replace a redundant post.
• Employers must pay at least the minimum wage appropriate to age.
• The employer must be able to demonstrate capacity to offer sustained employment.
• Employers from all sectors may be eligible for ERI and there is no restriction on the size of the employer however, priority will be given to private SMEs and third sector organisations (including social enterprises) with up to 500 employees.
• Participants must receive a written contract of employment (it is a legislative requirement that an employee receives a contract of employment within 2 months of starting) – the employment contract should be a permanent contract or a fixed term contract for up to 18 months or more.
• Employers who employ individuals on precarious or flexible contracts inappropriately e.g., zero hours contracts, will not be eligible. 
• Participants must work a minimum of 16 hours per week and a maximum of 40 hours per week in line with working time regulations.
• The participant must be resident within East Dunbartonshire however, the employer can be located throughout Scotland.

Eligibility for Participant (new employee)

Individuals aged 16 - 66, residing within East Dunbartonshire, including Graduates, are eligible for ERI support if they are unemployed (or on a paid work experience programme such as Kickstart and Community Jobs Scotland) and if they meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Disabled and or D/deaf person (includes those experiencing mental health issues and those who have an impairment or long-term health condition)
• Care experienced young people
• Primary Carer
• Person with a conviction (including CPO’s)
• No or limited work experience
• Early leavers from the armed forces, veterans and ex-forces personnel
• Long-term unemployed (6 months or over) who are not on Community Work Placements
• Person who has failed their ESA Work Capability Assessment
• People from Ethnic Minority backgrounds and racial groups, with a targeted approach informed by local population data
• Gypsy/travelling community
• Partner of current or ex-Armed forces personnel
• Person requiring support with language, literacy or numeracy, including those from whom English is an additional language
• Lone Parent
• Low Skilled (Individual’s highest level of qualification is at SCQF Level 4 or below)
• A young person who was receiving additional support for learning in school
• Refugee or other granted leave to stay in the UK
• Homeless person (including temporary or unstable accommodation)
• Person affected by substance abuse
• Living in a household with children in poverty
• Person living in the 15% most employment deprived SIMD geographies (A person residing in thinly populated areas according to the Degree of Urbanisation (DEGURBA category 3) classification)
• Person living in an area defined “as rural area” or “very remote rural area” (In the Scottish Government 8-Fold Urban Rural Classification)
• Living in a jobless household
• A parent of dependent children
•  Individual’s highest level of qualification is at SCQF Level 4 or below
• A person residing in thinly populated areas according to the Degree of Urbanisation (DEGURBA category 3) classification.
•  In the Scottish Government 8-Fold Urban Rural Classification

The following groups are NOT eligible:

• Are of compulsory school age
• Young people currently supported through Adopt an Apprentice or Adopt an Intern
• Attending school or college full time as a learner or student.
• In full –time Higher Education
• Have an existing contract of employment (including as a Modern Apprentice)
• An ineligible overseas national
• In custody or on remand in custody
• In receipt of Educational Maintenance Allowance
• In receipt of any other SG/SDS/DWP ERI
• Not domiciled in Scotland
• A resident participating in a DWP mandated initiative

Barriers with definitions

Barrier - Armed Forces Veteran

Definition - Former member of the UK Armed Forces

Barrier - Criminal convictions

Definition - This relates to any individual who has a criminal conviction that:

• Is not ‘spent’
• Is exempt from becoming ‘spent’
• Remains a barrier to progressing within the labour market e.g., gaps in c.v.

Barrier - Disability

Definition - "Participants with disabilities" are persons who are registered disabled according to national definitions.

Barrier - From Employment Deprived Areas

Definition - Residing in SIMD 15% most employment deprived geographies (see ESF Scottish Local Authority Employment Deprived Area Postcodes list).

Barrier - From Remote Rural Areas

Definition - Living in an area defined as “remote rural” or “very remote rural” in the Scottish Government 8 Fold Urban Rural Classification (see ‘Rural Area Rating’ column on ESF Scottish Local Authority Rural Area Postcodes list).

Barrier - From Rural Areas

Definition - "From rural areas" is to be understood as persons residing in thinly populated areas according to the Degree of urbanisation (DEGURBA category 3) classification. Thinly populated areas means that more than 50% of the population lives in rural grid cells.

Barrier - Homeless or affected by housing exclusion

Definition - In the absence of a national definition for "homeless or affected by housing exclusion”, the term should be understood according to the ETHOS (European Typology of Homelessness and Housing Exclusion) definition which is derived from the physical, social and legal interpretation of what a ‘home’ means. It classifies the following four living circumstances as homelessness or extreme forms of housing exclusion:

Rooflessness (people living rough and people in emergency accommodation),
Houselessness (people in accommodation for the homeless, in women's shelters, in accommodation for immigrants, people due to be released from institutions and people receiving long-term support due to homelessness),
Insecure accommodation (people living in insecure tenancies, under threat of eviction or violence), and
Inadequate housing (living in unfit housing, nonconventional dwellings e.g., in caravans without adequate access to public utilities such as water, electricity or gas or in situations of extreme overcrowding).
Adults living with their parents should not be registered under this indicator unless they are all homeless or living in insecure or in inadequate housing.

The definition of homeless can also include ‘sofa surfing’ - the practice of staying temporarily with various friends and relatives while attempting to find permanent accommodation.

Barrier - Living in a jobless household

Definition - “Households where no member is in employment i.e., all members are either unemployed or inactive”

“A household is defined as a housekeeping unit or, operationally as a social unit:

having common arrangements
sharing household expenses or daily needs
is a shared common residence
A household includes either one person living alone or a group of people, not necessarily related, living at the same address with common housekeeping i.e., sharing at least one meal per day or sharing a living or sitting room.”

Barrier - Long-term physical illness/ condition

Definition - Long term physical illness/condition diagnosed by medical professional

It is recommended that persons considered to be disabled but who are not registered are counted as “Long-term physical illness / condition’ and not as “Participants with disabilities”.

Barrier - Long-term Unemployed

Definition - Unemployed individuals who are registered as unemployed and in receipt of benefits who are 6 months continuous unemployment for under 25 and 12 months unemployed for over 25.

Barrier - Looked after young person

Definition - Under the provisions of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, 'Looked After Children' are defined as those in the care of their local authority. The majority will come into one of these categories:

• Looked after at home
• Looked after away from home

Barrier - Living in a household with children in poverty

Definition - Families in relative poverty - Children living in households on low incomes, compared to the average UK household.

Families in absolute poverty - Children living in low-income households where living standards are not increasing.

Families living in combined low income and material deprivation - Children living in low-income households who cannot afford basic essential goods and services.

Families in persistent poverty - Children living in households in poverty for three years out of four.

Barrier - Low skilled

Definition - Individual’s highest level of qualification is at SCQF Level 4 or below.

or

Where the participant has minimal qualifications at SCQF Level 7 or below and their skills level can be deemed a barrier to employment e.g., poor literacy and / or numeracy skills.

Barrier - Mental Health issues

Definition - Mental Health issues affect the way an individual thinks, feels and behaves, often has an impact on their day-to-day life and their ability to relate to others.

The following list is indicative, but not inclusive, of the range of mental health issues that may be experienced:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Phobias
• Eating Disorders
• Personality Disorders

Barrier - No or Limited work experience

Definition - Individuals who have no, or limited, experience of paid employment.

This can include individuals who have a notable gap(s) within their work history e.g., due to being inactive from the labour market because of family / caring responsibilities, periods of ill health etc.

In addition, this can include individuals who have worked for very limited periods of time e.g., Christmas cover.

Barrier - Primary carer of a child/children (under 18) or adult

Definition - Primary carer of a child/children (under 18) or adult.

Barrier - Primary carer of older person

Definition - Primary carer for a person over the age of 65 (this is the threshold used to qualify for Attendance Allowance).

Barrier - Refugee

Definition - An individual who 'owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country'

(Article 1, 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees)

A refugee is entitled to the same social and economic rights as any UK citizen. Refugees have full access to medical treatment, education, housing and employment.

Barrier - Substance related conditions

Definition - The continued misuse of substances (typically alcohol or drugs) that severely affects an individual’s physical and mental health, social situation and responsibilities.

This can include individuals in recovery where this remains a barrier to progressing within the labour market.