Slovenia - In August 2016 IOM Slovenia published a research report on the labour integration of beneficiaries of international protection in Slovenia and an accompanying Employment Toolkit in the six most common languages of the target group: Slovene, English, Arabic, Farsi, Urdu and Tigrinya.  The research, which served as a basis for the development of the toolkit, presents an overview of the national context in labour integration by compiling main policies and existing practices in Slovenia as well as planned measures of main governmental stakeholders which are underway due to the increase in the number of beneficiaries of international protection in Slovenia.

Interviews conducted in the framework of the research highlighted the necessity and vital importance of language instruction and the need for an expanded scope of Slovenian language learning in order to be able to access the local labour market. Greater familiarity with the labour legislation in the country, including workers’ rights, was also raised as a need by the respondents. Due to the high unemployment of the target group, incentives for alternative methods of employment, such as social entrepreneurship, as well as the development of free vocational trainings and courses, were raised by respondents as practical ways to increase the employability and economic independence of refugees in Slovenia.

The results of the research were used to develop the Employment Toolkit for Persons Granted International Protection in Slovenia. The toolkit provides beneficiaries of international protection in Slovenia with practical information on the job seeking process, the local labour legislation, educational opportunities and options for self-employment, and directs them to relevant organizations and institutions in case further information is needed.

IOM Slovenia distributed the toolkit to the Asylum Home and the Employment Service of Slovenia for further dissemination. The electronic version of the research and the toolkit was also shared with the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities and the Ministry of the Interior and will be made available to civil society organizations supporting the integration of persons with international protection in Slovenia.

The publication was made possible with the support of the Council of Europe Development Bank – Migrant and Refugee Fund.

For more information, contact IOM Slovenia, Tel. +386 14347351, Email iomljubljana@iom.int.