Vision

According to the INS, the employment rate of the population aged 20-64 was 62.4% (quarter II/2021), with 7.6 percentage points above the national target established in the context of the Europe 2020 Strategy. Capitalizing on the potential of the labor force , creating the conditions for increasing the degree of participation on the labor market and access to quality jobs are priority for maintaining the objective of 70% employment rate.

The unemployment rates at the level of the 3 counties implementing the ban (October 2021) are 2.95% for VL, 4.90% for OT and 3.15% for GJ. According to the SWOT Analyzes from the Sustainable Development Strategy and the action plan of the 3 counties, the weak points indicated are: high aging index, low level of urbanization, migration abroad in search of better jobs, high unemployment among vulnerable groups, low level of professional training, the need for professional reconversion, low percentage of literacy of the Roma population.

According to the needs analysis and ANOFM statistics, the most NEETs are in OT county (1027 young NEETs), while in all 3 counties the majority of young NEETs live in rural areas (426 out of 776 NEETs in VL, 379 out of 578 NEETs in GJ, 684 out of 1027 NEETS in OT). The large number of young NEETs from rural areas must be correlated with the level of poverty and marginalization, which is much higher in rural areas, and therefore measures are required to support the population that lives here.

Another category that was taken into account are the young Roma NEETs, even if at the level of the 3 counties the number of those registered is relatively small (1 Dec 2021): 30 young NEETs of Roma ethnicity.

According to SNOFM, the Roma population is faced with special problems, generated by the low level of education, having an extremely low participation in the labor market, the category of people who do not carry out economic activities being large and including housewives, pensioners, disabled people of work, beneficiaries of social assistance and people without occupation/unemployed. In this sense, we aim at integrated measures aimed at increasing the employment rate of people from vulnerable groups - NEETs - 371 young people, of which 30% will be selected young NEETs with employability levels C and D, respectively "difficult to employ" and "very difficult" employable", and 75 will have their domicile or residence in a rural environment and 38 will be of Roma ethnicity, in order to reduce the risk of poverty and social exclusion of their employment, simultaneously with stimulating participation in personalized training programs.

 

The problems that the needs analysis highlights:

At the labor market level:

1. The competencies that employers most frequently look for in young people are seriousness, willingness to learn, resistance to stress, discipline, respect for work. The interviewed persons, by applying a questionnaire to some employers, specified that young people tend not to be serious and to quickly give up their jobs when they are no longer satisfied. In this context, mediation activities are necessary.

2. The main fears of employers when integrating a young NEET into their team are the lack of seriousness and lack of motivation.

 

Regarding young NEETs:

1. The main reasons why some young people end up being NEETs are: dropping out of school, lack of support from the family (in certain cases), lack of responsibility for young people (being supported by their parents long after completing their studies), young people's desire to fit directly into a job with a high salary and easy schedule.

2. The main needs are professional training and counseling/mediation both before enrolling in a training course and after in order to integrate into the labor market.

3. The professional training courses preferred by young NEETs are those for: computer operator, data entry and validation, web designer, car mechanic, manicurist, confectioners, beauticians-beauty, make-up, hairdresser, specialist inspector, human resources inspector. in this direction, qualification and requalification courses will be organized in the project. Regarding Entrepreneurship Education, young NEETs are willing to follow entrepreneurship courses and are very interested in opening small businesses. It is necessary for them to be supported and followed, because they need thorough knowledge to open a business on their own account, and they also need a lot of material support. The additional challenges of young NEETs from rural areas and of Roma ethnicity is the fight against poverty and marginalization, financial incentives being necessary.

 

The consequences of not solving the problem of young NEETs are:

- Greater difficulty integrating young NEETs into the labor market, because the older they get, the more difficult it will be to apply active employment measures, and the openness to participate in professional training courses will be lower;

 - Low retention of young NEETs at jobs. Even if they find a job, young NEETs are not very employed.

- Increasing the level of poverty and social exclusion for young NEETs.

- Lack of qualified labor on local markets,

- The increase in the unemployment rate, the level of criminality, the migration to foreign countries of the young workforce.

In this sense, the project seeks immediate intervention to support young NEETs to qualify and requalify in order to integrate into the labor market, including on their own by supporting entrepreneurship.

 

The ways in which the project activity and objectives contribute to solving the specific needs of the GT:

1. Significant number of young NEETs from the 3 counties who need specific support measures for employment. The need for information regarding the opportunities they have as young NEETs, but also ways to be prepared for the demands of the labor market. Through the project, 371 young NEETs will be informed and promoted among young NEETS in order to be registered and profiled by the SPO, respectively their selection and maintenance in order to include in the GT of the project 371 young NEETs, of which 75 are from rural areas and 38 are Roma.

2. The need for acute training of young people both for their qualification and to meet the demands of the labor market. Through the project, support will be provided for 186 young NEETs to participate in FPC programs through integrated and flexible measures, programs in accordance with the preferences of young NEETs, with the needs of the labor market and with the professional training plans of the county training agencies.

3. The need for counseling and mediation on the labor market for young NEETs who need guidance in order to understand the mechanisms of the labor market and assume the jobs they want to follow. The project will provide specialized labor mediation services to stimulate employment, as a result of which at least 160 young people will get a job.

4. The high interest of young people related to entrepreneurship and the possibility of them being their own employers is limited to the poor financial resources and the low level of information. Measures are needed to support entrepreneurship among young NEETs and to support them with information, directions and incentives to give them the opportunity to have their own business. 5. The need for financial incentives. The project will offer subsidies for participation in training courses, entrepreneurship courses, as well as micro-grants for opening a business for 10 young NEETs.

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