Feature article
ILO project supported inclusive workplaces and increasing employability of people with disabilities through trainings and carrier fairs
As part of the project “Promoting Decent Work for Syrians under Temporary Protection and Turkish Citizens”, ILO works to increase the employability of persons with disabilities and enabling supportive working environments. Following the first gatherings in Ankara in May, trainings and career days for job seekers with disabilities and employers seeking to employ people with disabilities continued in both Adana on 10-13 June and in Gaziantep on 16-19 July.
24 July 2024
Adana and Gaziantep (ILO News) - “We have not got any opportunity so far to come together with so many company representatives in such a decent environment” said one of the participants in the training and career days organized for job seekers with disabilities in Adana.
He was one of 51 persons with disabilities in the “Training for Personal Competency Development for Persons with Disabilities”. The training was part of a series of events organized by the ILO, starting in May in Ankara, within the scope of the above-mentioned project on promoting decent work, implemented in cooperation with the Turkish Employment Agency (ISKUR) and the Private Employment Agency Engelsizkariyer. The four topics of the training for employees for people with disabilities were: feeling belonging, self-confidence and courage in business life, effective CV preparation, and successful interview techniques.
“We help both employees and employers to manage the employment processes in a sustainable manner and think that employers shall hire people with disabilities for decent work, not only to fill the quotas”, Mehmet Kızıltaş, founder of Engelsizkariyer said.
31 company representatives from various sectors participated in the “Training for Companies for Inclusive Communication and Selecting Successful Jobseekers with Disabilities” for companies. During the Adana career days held on the final day following the trainings, over 80 jobseekers with disabilities convened for interviews with 53 company representatives.
Officials from ISKUR and the project’s implementing partner Adana Organized Industrial Zone Regional Directorate also joined the trainings to provide information about the labour market and job opportunities for people with disabilities. The presentations and discussions focused on how to successfully match employees with disabilities to jobs, reasonable accommodation in the workplace, the importance of diversity and inclusion and inclusive recruitment.
Both job seekers and human resources staff shared their satisfaction about the trainings and interviews with the companies in Adana. A significant number of company representatives also shared their views that the trainings made a noticeable positive effect on the jobseekers regarding the self confidence and self-esteem.
During the last round of trainings with similar content in Gaziantep held on 16-19 July, the three-day sessions included 57 job seekers with disabilities and 39 employers for the trainings as well as 52 company representatives interviewed 183 jobseekers on the career day.
“As the ILO we believe that people with disabilities must be represented at all levels of programming across all policy areas, including accessible work and social dialogue. The inclusion of persons with disabilities is fundamental for ensuring no one is left behind with the motto of “nothing about us without us” Çiğdem Altunok, the ILO Office for Türkiye Technical Officer for Refugees said.
