Measures
announced last week to create a co-ordinated approach to the employment of
refugees and asylum-seekers could fulfil one of the key aims in Personnel
Today’s Refugees in Employment campaign.
The
plans, outlined by Home Secretary David Blunkett in a White Paper, Secure
Borders, Safe Haven, should make it easier for employers to recruit refugees to
offset skills shortages.
"A
national approach to integration is a new concept for the UK and we are at the
beginning of the process," the report says. "But the Government is
committed to integration as a vital part of the whole asylum process."
Proposals
include a number of new induction centres for asylum-seekers in London and the
South East, which will allow a more managed approach to processing
applications.
Asylum-seekers
will also be given registration cards that will include fingerprints and
details of employment status.
Accommodation
centres are also being built, which will house 3,000 people and run activities
such as English language and IT training.
–
Personnel Today’s Refugees in Employment campaign has been shortlisted for this
year’s CRE’s Race in the Media awards in the Specialist Magazine category.
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