Boosting refugees' access to employment

Refugees and newcomers have more difficulty than other disadvantaged groups to be employed. Insufficient command of the host country's language, difficulty in promoting their skills, and uncertainty about their status are, along with cultural prejudices, the main obstacles they face. However, they need and want to work, and they already master a large number of transversal skills, not always expressed but particularly sought after by employers, who for their part sometimes have difficulties to recruit. Finally, having a job is the best way to integrate and feel integrated.Brefe has tried to resolve these contradictions by working in four countries, France, Italy, Spain and Denmark with : - refugees and newcomers ; - language trainers, integration professionals, employment counselors, social workers and volunteers - employers.to identify practices and formalize a set of resources, methods and tools, which, when implemented together, can boost access to employment for refugees and newcomers. They need to become aware of their transversal skills in order to make the most of them on their path to employment. They also need to improve their learning methods so that they can continue to develop their language skills at home and at work without formal support that is not always available.Professionals and volunteers can improve their action by taking better account of the diversity of situations, needs and expectations. They need to become familiar with the skills to help refugees identify, express and value them. They must also optimize the time of their intervention by giving keys to reinforce autonomy in learning. Finally, language learning can take place anywhere and keep employment in mind.Companies have access to a large number of potential workers who, through their diversity and commitment, can bring real added value. They must be able to properly assess the skills of refugees, organize their reception to optimize the conditions for a sustainable integration. They must also be prepared to hire people who do not have a complete command of their language but who have a strong potential for progress that can be achieved through support measures at the workplace.Brefe delivers three guides with guidelines, methods, tools and testimonies to optimize the support of refugees towards and in employment, to adapt the socio-linguistic support and to better take into account transversal skills. The whole is available under a free license, organized in a dynamic way on a multilingual website.