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Looking to upskill or retrain? New online portal launched for the unemployed, businesses and employees

Those on the PUP can sign up to courses without losing their payment.

A NEW ONLINE portal for businesses, employees or unemployed persons seeking to upskill or retrain has been launched today. 

The one stop shop outlines the third level options available, from short part-time courses, to courses for individuals in employment or those looking to return to third level.

“There are so many options out there for people but the system is complex and can overburden some people.

“This online portal offers people a clear picture of what is on offer, how they can access it and the supports available to people also.

“Ireland is a small country. We cannot afford to have untapped talent and we cannot leave any person locked out of society because of a lack of skills,” Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris said today.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has forced us to confront many of the skills shortages we have. We must ensure our people have access to the skills they need to succeed in life; and Irish business has the people with the skills they need to grow. This is also critical to securing our recovery and ensuring Ireland’s people share in that recovery,” Harris told reporters today.

The portal – www.gov.ie/therightcourse - gives information on further education and training places, the courses in higher education on offer, and information for those on a social welfare payment.

Work placements are also available, and free college courses are also available to people who lost their job during the pandemic.

Business owners are also encouraged to explore the range of upskilling options available from Skillnet Ireland including enterprise-led business supports, targeted upskilling opportunities for employees in businesses, free online training programmes and virtual job placements.

He said people should also consider an apprenticeship, where you can earn as you learn.

There is also an incentive for businesses to take on an apprenticeship in the form of a €3,000 incentive payment.

To date, 1,358 employers have signed up to this, hiring 2,350 apprenticeships.

Harris added: “If you are unemployed temporarily as a result of Covid-19, now could be the time to do a short course. You can still retain your social welfare payments while undertaking the course.

“Or if you are in employment but want to improve your skillset, there are options available to you too.”

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    Mute Daniel Skelton
    Favourite Daniel Skelton
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:20 PM

    I’ve said many times, will keep saying it: corporations like Meta are NOT your friend in any way.

    217
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    Mute Kev Barnes
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:26 PM

    @Daniel Skelton: I don’t think anyone ever has thought of a corporation as their friend… When was the last time you went for a coffee with a corporation?

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    Mute Daniel Skelton
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:30 PM

    @Kev Barnes: True, but I consider ones like Meta to be the lowest of the low. You can’t get any lower than them.

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    Mute mani mus
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:42 PM

    @Kev Barnes: you’ve never seen someone scrolling of Facebook in a café?

    18
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    Mute Shane Cormican
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:57 PM

    @Daniel Skelton: good man Daniel does that mean other corporates are?

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    Mute Alex
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:22 PM

    @Daniel Skelton: TikTok is even lower than meta is it has been created specially to make our youth dumber.
    It should be 100% banned.

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    Mute Kev Barnes
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:27 PM

    @mani mus: I have.. But that doesn’t make your phone your friend

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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:29 PM

    @Kev Barnes: Our leaders do it all the time.

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    Mute Tom Conmy
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:52 PM

    @Kev Barnes: Badum-tsshh

    3
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    Mute James Groden
    Favourite James Groden
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:04 PM

    You should be over the age of 18 to own a smart phone. They are one of the greatest scourges to enter society and I’m not being over dramatic when I say that. They allow bullying of kids to continue at all times, they give kids incorrect perceptions of their image and create very harmful addictions.
    It is frightening how many parents give kids as young as 6 or 7 unfiltered access to some of the worst aspects of society.
    No access, no problem.
    If you think your child needs a phone to contact you, then buy a non-smartphone.
    But an entire ban would take peer pressure out of the equation.

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    Mute Steve O'Hara-Smith
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:19 PM

    Ban the sale of advertising on the internet and this problem will vanish.
    All the social media companies depend on advertising and use addictive interfaces to drive up “engagement” and numbers so that they can charge more for advertising.

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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
    Favourite Thesaltyurchin
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:30 PM

    @Steve O’Hara-Smith: Good idea, would go further and ban data minning too.

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    Mute Steve O'Hara-Smith
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    Jun 20th 2024, 2:31 PM

    @Thesaltyurchin: Harder to define but yes indeed.

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    Mute Jb Walshe
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:37 PM

    You could probably add some adults to that as well.

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    Mute Ger Whelan
    Favourite Ger Whelan
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    Jun 20th 2024, 2:11 PM

    @Jb Walshe: like you?

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    Mute Clare Power
    Favourite Clare Power
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:57 PM

    There should be a new poll…Do Irish judges attend Andrew Tate seminars? To give a man a clap on the back for attacking a women that he admitted to….the wheel is rolling backwards.

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    Mute Roman Walczak Sadlowski
    Favourite Roman Walczak Sadlowski
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:55 PM

    An outright ban is needed until 18 years of age. Also social media should not allow the posting of so called news links or any links of that matter. It used to be about photos, sharing of nights out and socialising and sharing memories.. Politics, Screwing with our children’s minds was not part of it.. or screwing with adults minds for that matter.

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    Mute Etcher
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    Jun 20th 2024, 4:47 PM

    @Roman Walczak Sadlowski: Outright ban wont solve anything. The social media companies, specifically X, Meta and Snap need to ensure anonymous accounts are not possible. If you want a social media account you need to provide proof of identification. As soon as all these cowards online hiding behind their keyboard know there is attribution behind every one of their posts it will stop overnight. Literally within 24 hours harrassment, doxxing, bullying, far-right nonsense, fake news and video posts etc will cease.

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    Mute Tom Newell
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:54 PM

    Society is doing a bang up job of doing the damage already without social media. The current and next generation will have some mess to clean up from the damage thats been done and I dont evny them.

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    Mute Brian Keelty
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:19 PM

    But not quite as much as the current government are.

    38
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    Mute Mary Kelly
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    Jun 20th 2024, 3:15 PM

    It’s so sad to see a group of teenage friends together just looking at their phones….no messing about, talking, slagging or laughter. My teen years in the early 90s were spent talking with friends and others my age, about everything and nothing, getting bored, slagging each other off, arguing and making up again…walking for hours or sitting around.
    No child under 13 needs a phone. As a parent it is hard, but you have to lay down the law and say
    No. My 12 year old has no phone, as I have told him his friends all live in our estate, he can walk over to them if he needs to talk.

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    Mute Argus Romsworth
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    Jun 20th 2024, 12:43 PM

    Just behind substance abuse

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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:33 PM

    @Argus Romsworth: Reckon if you count the profits (lets no pretend that anything else matters here) that tech bros are making way more than the narcos.

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    Mute Eddie Garvey
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    Jun 20th 2024, 2:19 PM

    Not a hope of any action here. Money and profit is what our society value, child/people’s welfare are only considered if it doesn’t affect the bottom line. Have you not scene all the betting companies concern for problem gambling . If your winning your account is restricted, if your losing, bet away.

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    Mute JP
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:29 PM

    They are very addictive. An addiction is only bad news.

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    Mute Steve O'Hara-Smith
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    Jun 20th 2024, 4:33 PM

    @JP: Facebook was designed by psychologists to be addictive, that’s the main reason it crushed Bebo, MySpace etc.

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    Mute Setanta O'Toole
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:41 PM

    Most of the most mentally unstable people i see on social media these days are 40+. The ones harrassing td’s and guards and librarians and such.

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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
    Favourite Thesaltyurchin
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    Jun 20th 2024, 1:33 PM

    Least we forget, THIS is a social media space.

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    Mute Laura H
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    Jun 20th 2024, 5:08 PM

    You can say ‘ban smartphones’ until you’re blue in the face – gen z (hope I got that right) life revolves around social platforms – I had an argument with a friend back in 2018 about the detrimental effects this behaviour would have as I had been reading articles on it – basically they stated that the young ones wouldn’t know how to adapt to social situations, that they wouldn’t be able to decipher facial expressions, body language.
    It’s not just about the bullying aspect, it reaches far deeper. Images on social media are heavily filtered and, especially for girls, can make them feel insecure and lack confidence in comparison to what they see on screen.
    It was hard enough for me growing up, I was bullied but it was in person, was dealt with, the end. Online is endless.

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    Mute Gerald Kelleher
    Favourite Gerald Kelleher
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    Jun 20th 2024, 4:14 PM

    Stop bullying kids by dumping anxiety on them.

    https://climatekids.nasa.gov/kids-guide-to-climate-change/

    The June Solstice happens today, and the Green party, rather than run with experimental theorists who imagine climate is one thing as long-term weather, teaches students that Ireland has a maritime climate as one topic among many within the Earth science of climate.

    I never mind those who try to throw their weight around in the comments as though this is a schoolyard. I need adults in the room and in the Journal.

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    Mute P. V. Aglue
    Favourite P. V. Aglue
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    Jun 20th 2024, 4:49 PM

    @Gerald Kelleher: Nooooo! The winters coming

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    Mute P. V. Aglue
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    Jun 20th 2024, 4:53 PM

    @Gerald Kelleher: they left out the elnino effect in the climate change guide.

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    Mute Sill Scoundrel
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    Jun 20th 2024, 7:37 PM

    @Gerald Kelleher: I really wish researchers in social science hadn’t started using the term “climate anxiety” when surveying young people. Psychologists don’t want that term used. The vast majority of young people and children who report concerns about climate change in these studies do not have anxiety. Anxiety is complicated and it is generally rooted in the child’s early childhood experiences and the attachment styles of those who care for them. You could stop telling children that carbon emissions trap radiation tomorrow and I doubt it would have any impact on the numbers of children being treated for anxiety. I don’t care about the models. There are many excellent reasons to clean up our act and pursue renewable energy resources that don’t require you to buy into global warming. Young people are rightfully concerned about how human actions are impacting our environment. They aren’t mad, we are polluting the planet at a rate that can’t possibly be good, we have volumes of hard evidence demonstrating the mounting negative consequences to humans (children in particular) and we should stop.

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    Mute Gerald Kelleher
    Favourite Gerald Kelleher
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    Jun 20th 2024, 8:09 PM

    @Sill Scoundrel: At last, a reasonable person even if climate research covers many topics.

    The environmental party should protect society from academics looking for funding while supplying hysteria.

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    Mute Wayne Shoes
    Favourite Wayne Shoes
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    Jun 20th 2024, 10:25 PM

    I absolutely love social media

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    Mute Padraig O'Brien
    Favourite Padraig O'Brien
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    Jun 20th 2024, 7:35 PM

    Not as big a threat as the scary wary pilots!

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