Employment Support - Path to Success

The Employment Support - Path to Success project, reg. no. CZ.03.1.48/0.0/0.0/17_075/0009171, was financed by the European Social Fund through the Operational Programme Employment.

The aim of the project was to improve the position and chances in the labor market for the involved individuals from the target group, resulting in increased employment and employability. Motivate them to overcome barriers to labor market entry, provide support for their entry and retention in the labor market, enhance their work competencies, and offer them employment and debt counseling. The project also provided retraining to increase their employability. The project addressed the difficult access to employment for national minorities, especially Roma, in the Olomouc region.

Services were provided both on-site and in the field, including clients' households.

Service Locations:

• Olomouc Region

Who was the service intended for?

• Individuals over 18 years old,
• Applicants registered with the Labor Office or inactive individuals, belonging to national minorities in the Olomouc region - the primary target group being Roma,
• Individuals from other national minorities in the Czech Republic with basic education, low or unsuitable qualifications, or without experience in long-term employment,
• Individuals facing social exclusion or other socially pathological phenomena and discrimination.

What did we offer?

Employment counseling

• development of basic competencies necessary for employment in the labor market,
• support for activities aimed at acquiring and maintaining work habits and gaining work experience,
• support for service recipients in communicating with potential employers,
• assistance with resume and cover letter preparation,
• preparation for a job interview and the possibility of accompaniment to a job interview,
• acquisition of so-called soft skills,
• cooperation with the relevant labor office for maximum identification and coverage of service recipients' needs,
• facilitation of communication with the relevant labor office and potential employers,
• increasing awareness of the rights and obligations of employees and employers,
• support in resolving labor disputes,
• support in selecting suitable professional retraining with regard to future employment opportunities,
• possibility of securing retraining course funded by the project,
• support after obtaining employment during the adaptation period,
• assistance in acquiring basic computer literacy.

Debt counseling

• support in gaining orientation on the financial situation of service recipients through mapping of obligations,
• assistance with filing a proposal for insolvency and debt relief with the relevant court,
• individual debt and execution solutions,
• assistance in setting up a repayment schedule,
• assistance in drafting requests and other documents in communication with creditors or executors,
• accompaniment to meetings with creditors, executors, or various organizations or institutions,
• exposing unfair practices and referring to institutions that help resolve disputes arising in connection with them,
• increasing financial literacy of service recipients and educating them on how to protect their rights when entering into contractual relationships,
• consultation with service recipients on improving their social situation,
• motivating service recipients to address indebtedness and manage financial resources responsibly,
• in justified cases, the possibility to use the services of an external lawyer specialized in debt issues (the decision on the appropriateness of using this service lies within the competence of the service provider).

Principles of provision:

• provision of service for FREE,
• discretion, the option to use the service anonymously,
• support for solving one's needs independently,
• individual approach,
• respecting the user's free will.

Project Work Support - the path to success was implemented in the period from 1. 10. 2018 to 30. 11. 2020.