Labour leader Alan Kelly has warned that 57% of young people are currently out-of-work and the Government needs to act urgently to ensure this does not become what he termed a scarred generation.
While he accepted financial supports were in place for workers and businesses, he said the €850 million due from the EU Recovery Fund "simply isn't enough," and "it's not proportionate or fair".
Speaking during Leaders' Questions in the Dáil, Deputy Kelly also said workers who had been made redundant risked losing significantly if their Pandemic Unemployment Payments were taken into account.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said youth unemployment was a "deep concern for all of us" and the Government was acting.
He said the three-pronged strategy was to save as many jobs as possible; create new jobs; and offer training and educational opportunities.
On new jobs, he said there was "still a very good pipeline of jobs" on the way from sectors like medical, pharma, and transport.
Mr Varadkar said a new Stability Programme would be published next month, while a revised National Development Plan and Ireland 2040 would be published in May or June.
Mr Kelly said when it came to youth unemployment, "speed is of the essence" and Ireland needs a "quicker timeline" than is currently planned.
The Government also faced accusations that workers in meat plants have been abandoned repeatedly in the pandemic and the level of testing in plants had been reduced.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said he knew of one case where a worker who had raised issues was "kicked out of his accommodation".
He said there had been four Covid-19 outbreaks in the past week and said that 90% of these workers were not entitled to sick pay.
In response, the Tánaiste said that all workers were entitled to the €350 enhanced illness benefit which could be paid for up to ten weeks.
He said meat plants were a high risk environment and there was serial testing in the plants.
Reporting Paul Cunningham and David Murphy
