The Project Is a Co-Operation Between the Municipalities of Eskilstuna and Strängnäs And

Presentation:

We are running an ESF-project financed by the European Social Fund,which is working to enhanceand develop national labour market policies.

The project is a co-operation between the municipalities of Eskilstuna and Strängnäs and the Employment Office/Job Center.

The project aims at a target group in need of financial support and with a suspected diagnosis or with a stated diagnosis.This group of people often falls between chairs, as they are regarded as “too able”; their difficulties doesn´t show on the outside, although it sometimes is an issue of having a diagnosis.

Through the project, we wish to make way for more target groups outside the labour market by spreading the IPS-method nationally. Also, the goal for the project is also to be able to influence and change the labour market by making visible the view of employers on employment for the target group, and thereby be able to influence on a strategic level. Co-operation and good relations make a basis for sustainable and long term work.

Currently, most of the actions taken by the municipalities, gives short term solutions, and UNCFDP worries about the 100 % increase of the quantity of registered unemployed people with disabilities. The municipality of Eskilstuna has been actively working with having people with considerable disabilities into employment within the municipality´s own administration and companies. This work has led to the wish from the local politicians that a certain percentage from the staff in the municipality will have some kind of disability. To increase equality in society, this is made by application of the IPS method. We are also aware that long term financial support is a huge risk factor formental illness. Consequently, we wish to further include the target group from financial support inthe project.

The current target group often suffers from disabilities not visible on the outside, difficult to discover, which means unreasonable demands and incorrect treatment of the person. We wish to see a change of attitude against the target group on the labour market as well as from other authorities when it comes to treatment and show of power. Our aim is a good cooperation between different bodies, as we are aware thatthis increases equality for the target group. We also wish that the employers will see the target group as a resource, and we problematizeand reveal different opinions by interviewing a number of employers. In our work, we alsotutor employers in treatment and approach. IPS gives us possibilities to focus on the indvidual and to work with service design that allow usto build actions and activities from the participant´s needs. Statistics made by the municipality of Eskilstuna visibly shows an increased need of the IPS method since the implementation of the method in 2011, and thereby a decreased wish for internal actions. One of the project goals is to implement IPS as a working model for more target groups, and also nationwide, as the method means an increase of participation in society for each individual. Our project aim is our structural work with equality, standard critical thinking and availability, which is being evaluated on a regular basis. We continuously work with motivation and empowerment as well as with ICF, which advocates good health from different aspects of life.

The project reports a few half time results in order to indicate a step-wise transfer towards better health and quality of life. We also wish to indicate the participants own views and opinions in part-taking in the project.

With the support of IPS as a work method, together with support from the employment office, they are supported into self-sufficiency.

We started up October 1, 2016, and the progress of implementation is moving forward. The project is running over three years, after which it will be evaluated. During these three years, during which we will prove the cost-effectiveness of the IPS-method, we have access to an evaluator. The evaluator assists us in measuring stepwise movement towards self-sufficiency, which in the end will prove socio-economic profit. There are meetings held with the managing group continuously, and the work specialists are in close touch with staff outside the project, guiding them into applying IPS in their daily work. Since then, we have been able to give 12 people access to different work places (pharmacies, retail trade, stock, supermarkets).

The project runs on a low budget, this being possible as we work close to other actors on the labour market, as well as the fact that the work specialists spend about 60% of their time outside the office, using their cell phones and lap tops etc, meaning low costs for localities.

There are a number of benefits, advantages and strengths in the project:

• Economic gain in long-tern socio-economic profit leading to improved health conditions and improved family situations
• Co-operation
• Finding joint evidence-based work methods
• Resisting categorizing people into simple solutions
• Use of IPS for getting disabled people into work

The IPS-method (Individual Placement and support) means:

• Your will to work or study is the basis
• Your experiences, interests and choices are important and controls the planning
• You are offered guidance and support in questions concerning financial and supply issues
• Your goal is ordinary wage labour
• You receive individually adapted support from your place of work
• Together we start the search for work straight away
• The work specialist get in touch with companies and places of work in order to find suitable work

Our clients says that the IPs-method work so well because they are , often for the first time in their lives, taking control over their own lives and that they have someone who believe in them.

If we should mention any weaknesses (there are very few) it would be the fact that employers need to understand how society functions, that disabled people have the same needs as anybody else.

As we see it, there are no disadvantages for society whatsoever, but it is a challenge for the Government to make society responsible for all individuals.

Mentioning employers and the labour market, there are some issues worth to pointout, these being involved in our work and in our activities on the open labour market, concerning type of contracts, learning opportunities and career perspectives

• Study visits, as our clients never have been participants of the labour market
• Financial support leading to “real” wages or financial support for studies
• Work practice as a start, the work specialists take part in order to support the client
• Voluntary action for clients and employers
• See the person as a resource
• In time, lead into “real” duties at work
• An employer never pays less than minimum wages

About ESF (The European Social Fund)

Since 1957, ESF is Europe´s main instrument for supporting jobs, helping people to get better job opportunities and ensuring fair job opportunities.

The European Union is committed to creating more and better jobs and a socially inclusive society. In order to improve job prospects for millions of Europeans, in particular those who find it difficult to get work, ESF is financing EUR 10 billion a year (10% of the total EU-budget). More-over, there are the contributions made by the member countries. How the money is allocated between the countries is dependent of their relative prosperity.

ESF in Sweden

Each country is responsible for creating a programming document: a plan for how to use the money, stating goals and priorities. The programming document is to be adapted by the conditions and current challenges on the labour market of respective country. Usually, the Social Fund is covering at most 50% of the costs – the projects themselves must sponsor part of the cost for each single project.

The ESF is not an employment agency and does not advertise jobs. Also there is a great variety in the nature, size and aims of the different ESF projects, and they address a wide variety of target groups.

The Swedish ESF Council is a government agency under the Ministry of Labour and responsible for administrating Socialfonden (the Social Fund) and FEAD* in Sweden. The Swedish ESF Council is Managing Authority for the European Social Fund (responsible for the implementation of the European Social Fund in Sweden).

The overall goal of the Social Fund Programme is that the programme should contribute to a well-functioning labour market and long-term employment.

The purpose of the Council´s work is to strengthen the individual´s position in working life and thereby contribute to increased employment and growth.

The authority has approx. 130 employees in eight regional offices (Eskilstuna is tied to ÖstraMellansverige) throughout the country and with HQ in Stockholm.

The horizontal principles

• Equality: women and men have the same possibilities and rights
• Accessibility: improve the accessibility for disabled people with the aim of improving integration in employment and education
• Non-discrimination: counteract discrimination on grounds of gender, race, ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation
• Ecological sustainability: an economy with the ability to generate resources which increase human well-being and social justice while environmental risks and the use of finite natural resources are sharply reduced. Optional.

*FEAD

Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived

The goal for the Fund is to promote social cohesion, to improve social participation and finally to contribute to the goal of eradicating poverty within the EU.

The Swedish ESF Council has been contracted to implement FEAD – the fund for those most deprived.

The Swedish programme works with policies for social inclusion. Sweden, Holland, Denmark and Germany are the countries that have chosen this track. Sweden is focusing on two areas: civic orientation and health promotion.

SuccessFactors IMA

-Strategic cooperative work, to make visible and spread all parts of the project (such as politicians, employers, relatives, psychiatry, school, etc)

-Notice the participants´ strengths and skills as well as motivation and willingness

-To have the right person employed as work specialist (characteristics like inquisitiveness, bravery, believe in the target group and with ahuge social competence areimportant factors, as well as to be able to set frames and to create structure in their work)

-The participant is sold in as a resource and there is an open attitude towards the participant´s current situation, employers value an open attitude and we have seen the benefits of this

-A huge amount of time is spent with creating relations with employers, both spontaneous and planned-for face to face meetings. It is equally important to keep up a relation as it is to be brave and inquisitive

-To be able to support the participant with short vocational education as a majority of the target group totally miss full ratings and has no experience from work.

-Creating relations and net-working together with the participant, to create trust is a success factor

-To be centrally situated close to public transport and huge possibilities to different forms of meeting outside the office- and authority environment

-As work specialist, to be able to spend 60% of their workinghours in the open society

-To have tools to show step-wise move forward

-Turn the employers perspective/thoughts towards the target group as a resource

-That we work with a standard critical thinking

Current critical factors for IMA

-To actually find the people who are motivated and willing and are ready for it

-Outsourcers might be critical towards new ways of work and methods and it would be of benefit with more individual placements

- Participants are living on subsistence level and would, with the help of low costs, enhance their possibilities for work through starting to look at how the environment of the participant looks and what would be needed (short vocational education, oral care, haircuts, more food). We have encountered the fact that people can´t afford to eat well when the job demand more energy, feel that they don´t look good enough for an interview when the glasses are glued together or when the clothes are worn – just a few examples

To applytoothers

-To be collocated with other interaction operators

-Having, right from the start, focused on implementation and to have the project in their existing activities

-Socio economic evaluation and step-wise move forward

-Much work with employers and with creatingrelations with those in order to reach employment , to think IPS both to participants and employers as we are a support to both parties

What would we do differently

- Prepare outsourcers and introduce them to the IPS-method at an early stage

- Put more money in the budget for transnational co-operation, as co-operation and exchange of experience give and make possible long-term strategic influence for the target group

Theme: Tools and Methodologies

11:30 – 12:30

Panel Discussion

Individual Planning and Support Model (IPS) Panel Discussion

• Sonia Abelanski, HabitaAlternatif Social (HAS). France

Habitat social Alternatif, défendre la dignité des personnes fragilisées par le droit au logement et le droit à la santé

• Aisling Curran, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust. Northern Ireland

Services, Hospitals, Healthy Living.

• Patrick Ruppol, SUEM. Belgium

SUEM.be is the Belgian association for Supported Employment and forms part of the European Union of Supported Employment

• Jana Ponikvar, SENTPRIMA-Institute for Rehabilitation and Education. Slovenia

ŠENTPRIMA is private institution acting in the field of rehabilitation and education. In 2005 was founded by ŠENT – Slovenian Association for Mental Health

• Tina Ylitorvi, Eskilstuna kommun. Sweden