Discussions between young people and employers

In 2009, the Swiss Academy for Development (SAD) will hold round tables and workshops on the topic of “Integrating young people with a migrant background in the employment market“ in three locations in Switzerland.

The motivation for this project came from the results of several studies that proved the discrimination against young people with a migrant background when looking for an apprenticeship or a job, as well as from various private and public pilot projects initiated to counter this tendency.
With this project, SAD would like to appeal especially to firms and employers to support young people from migrant backgrounds in assuming their responsibility toward society and improving their selection procedure for apprentices.

Project goals

• Information and awareness-raising: Employers and young people are informed about existing offers, private initiatives and projects to improve the integration of youths with a migrant background into the employment market.
• Exchange of experiences: Positive and negative experiences made on the part of the employers as well as young people will be exchanged.
• Networking: Face-to-face contacts will be made and relationship networks expanded.
• Conceptualisation: Options for further actions and measures will be discussed and developed collectively.
• Implementation: The ideas from the project and the initiatives will be developed further and implemented by local authorities, firms, decision makers and/or specialist departments.
  

Project schedule

In the first part of the roundtable discussions, short presentations will give the participants insights into studies, experiences of young people and firms, as well as pilot projects that have already been carried out. In the second part, personal experiences, opinions and requests can be exchanged and barriers, concerns and difficulties addressed in professionally-moderated discussions. Based on the concrete needs and requests of the participants, measures and ideas for projects will be devised, which can be implemented by them or other institutions. The practical implementation of these projects and activities will then be explored and developed.
The round tables are planned in the towns Zurich and Biel.

Target audience

Firms, Human resources managers (for apprentices)

Young people with a migrant background looking for an apprenticeship or job

Representatives of employer and trade associations, social workers, decision makers etc.

Katharina Haab
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