Page 144 - valuing-diversity-guidance-for-labour-market-integration-of-migrants

Valuing diversity: guidance for labour market integration of migrants

fact that the monitoring of the practices is not harmonised and that there are
normally no provisions to retain detailed information about them, further lowers
the possibility of reproducing them elsewhere.
Financing is limited in time and normally European part-funding is used. This
aspect is connected to the previous one and one of the main reasons why
practices are not sustained. The financing mechanisms are either spin offs of
general programmes in education and employment policies (public initiative
programmes) or NGO initiatives, frequently in cooperation with local authorities.
Resource to the ESF or the EIF is frequent. To assure continuity of practices,
NGOs are frequently forced to queue projects in joint financed regular calls for
tender.
In more institutionalised environments, contradictions can exist due to
financing rules which make integration policies difficult and reduce the role of
guidance. The common case mentioned in interviews is where organisations are
inserted in accountability systems and their performance is measured by the rate
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of completion of training courses or by displaying low levels of dropouts ( ). In
these organisations, the tendency is not to attempt preventive or recovery
measures, but rather to ensure that the performance of pupils does not impact
negatively on their budget. There is clear room for improvement of financing rules
by including guidance to at-risk groups as a positive element in the accountability
systems.
The private sector still plays a limited role in financing integration initiatives.
Although employers are often open to integration practices, they usually have a
limited role in financing the networks of professionals and organisations that
develop guidance practices. This might be partly due to limited awareness of the
weight and relevance of the immigrant component in the labour market. Some
initiatives, such as Red Ariadna, from the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid,
attempt to inform employers about the growing need to employ immigrant labour,
associated integration issues and best practices in making a better use of
workers’ skills and qualifications.
Cooperation between different ministries, administrative levels and
stakeholders, such as migrant associations, employers and employment
services, is necessary to achieve results in guidance for integration. Many of the
projects that appear to have a relevant level of impact over immigrant
communities and their possibilities of integration in the labour market rely on
cooperation structures which frequently involve NGOs, local administrations,

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( ) These measures often do not monitor the evolution of these levels, but simply
establish a cross-sectional ranking of schools.

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