Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with employers in the aviation industry on pre-employment security checks for Kickstart placements.
Discussions on the specific recruitment needs of the aviation sector are happening at a local level where airports are situated, and nationally by our National Employer and Partnership Team. As part of our placed based approach we tailor the support required to meet local employer’s needs, and where pre-employment checks have been identified as a potential issue the District teams have proactively taken steps to address this. For example, in West London they build pre-employment security checks into the screening process for airport based opportunities; in Manchester a series of upskilling sessions were delivered to Work Coaches, including an overview of pre-employment requirements for working at the airport.
We have had a number of conversations with employers and their representatives across all sectors for the launch of the Kickstart Scheme. Whilst the responsibility for undertaking security and other pre-employment checks rests with those parties, the Department will fund a ‘start up’ payment of £1500 for each placement approved which would assist with the costs of such checks.