Supporting professionally qualified refugees into employment
Refugees may be highly qualified and experienced professionals, yet many remain unemployed or under employed, in a lower-grade occupation than their skills merit. This has consequences for these individuals, including loss of earnings and loss of identity and self-worth, but also for the UK economy where there are many areas of skills shortage. Mainstream employment and refugee support organisations lack the specialised knowledge to help these individuals, which is the basis of professional bodies and their members.
A recent project by Dr John Willott at Leeds Beckett University, on a project led by Migration Yorkshire and funded by the EU Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, produced a review of the policies and activities of professional bodies to support refugees and other migrants into their disciplines, and research into the experiences of migrants in seeking professional employment.
The full research report is available here and the findings have informed a guide to the issues faced by highly skilled refugees, and the practical ways in which professional bodies could further support them into work.
Colleagues at PARN were very supportive in discussions, and I look forward to taking this project forward via further research and investigation. In collaborating with PARN further, we are eager to obtain the views of members, and what further research or support might be useful.
Any readers who have any comments or input regarding the report or next steps can contact Alex Witt at [email protected] or Dr John Willott at [email protected].