Description
The CUALIFICATE project is deemed necessary due to the difficulties presented by the labour market for female single-parent wage-earners, victims of gender violence and immigrant women. Our aim is to advise and encourage women to improve their qualifications and guide them individually to get into the labour market through a careers guidance service which fosters equal opportunities in the labour market, an individual assessment service for their professional qualification recognition and career improvement, a service to balance work and family life, and advising and supporting women in situations that may hinder their entering the labour market or professional training.
Summary of project results
The project has focused on three groups of vulnerable women such as migrants, single mothers, and gender violence victims. Single mothers face special difficulties for participating in the labour market and for social inclusion, which become even higher when they are also migrants or gender violence victims. Available private and public services cannot always provide the customized support as these women need. The main goal of the project was to promote gender equality in the access to employment for women from the three mentioned target groups. More concretely, the project aimed to create a service of social and labour guidance and assessment to facilitate the access to the existing mechanisms of validation of professional skills. In addition, the project aimed to coordinate with other entities to create synergies and to provide the mentioned services considering the work-life balance obstacles that many of the women from the mentioned target groups face. A service of social and labour guidance and assessment has been provided to 82 participants. 7% of them found a job while they were participating in this service. This service has included training to complement the existing skills, guidance for employment seeking or change of occupation, workshops to write CVs, cover letters and to attend to job interviews, and assessment and guidance about entrepreneurship and self-employment. In addition, a specialized service on professional qualifications has been offered. This service has consisted in a follow-up of the calls for validation of qualifications, and reporting and assessment to participants about how to obtain the validation of their qualifications, including advice on topics such as the validation of foreign diplomas, which bureaucratic procedures are needed and how to deal with them. Moreover, support has been offered to women with special difficulties in fields such as psychological support, child care services, loans, or school support for the children of participants.
Summary of bilateral results