Update RefugeeWork: we see potential

In October we announced that Refugee Talent Hub had acquired RefugeeWork. We indicated then that we would take until the end of 2024 to create a new substantive plan together with all relevant interested parties.

In October we announced that Refugee Talent Hub had acquired the RefugeeWork platform. We indicated then that we would take until the end of 2024 to create a new substantive plan together with all relevant interested parties. We did so. In a series of conversations in recent months we have worked with various organizations to form, test and refine ideas.

We learned a lot from that, including:

•  The platform contains many profiles of people looking for work and many profiles of employers looking for people;
•  New job seeker and employer profiles are still being created on RefugeeWork almost every day.
•  Digital skills matching is complex and error-prone;
•  Basically, there is a lot of enthusiasm about such a platform, from employers, newcomers and partners in our field.

 We were and are encouraged from various sides to continue RefugeeWork. So we are not the only ones who see the potential of the platform to help a large group of people take a step further on their way to paid work. That is great, because we do not want to do this alone. It is precisely the collaboration with partners that gives us energy. That has always been the case in everything we do, and that is no different now.

 “We are still leaving too much talent untapped.”

Meanwhile, the number of job-seeking newcomers continues to grow, and employers' search for talent shows no signs of slowing.

 Earlier this month, NOS quoted Judith Duveen of the UWV: “Many more asylum seekers could find work. We are still leaving too much talent untapped. It would be good if we could look together at what else people can do and what their skills are.” We completely agree with that, and the same applies to status holders. At Refugee Talent Hub, we see refugees as professionals who happen to be born somewhere else. That is why we find it extra important to make the right choices in the restart of RefugeeWork. In that context, we are looking, for example, at participating in one of the pilots that UWV, VNG and the COA will start in the first quarter of 2025 to improve guidance to work for asylum seekers and status holders who are still staying in an asylum seekers' centre.

The central database with rich and up-to-date profiles of job-seeking newcomers

We are enthusiastic and want to continue with RefugeeWork in principle. We want to focus initially on enriching and updating the profiles of job-seeking newcomers. This is where the greatest need lies at the moment.

The period between October and December was too short to remove all uncertainties; there are still questions unanswered. These are, for example, questions such as:

•  What exactly does an employer want to see on the profile of a job-seeking newcomer? And how far away are we from this?
•  To what extent are the mapped financing and business models appropriate and feasible, and within what time frame? And are there others that we have not yet set our sights on?
•  Is current technology adequate for our plans and the needs of the users?

 As we continue to explore these questions in the first months of 2025, the platform will continue to exist in its current form, so that employers and job seekers can continue to use it. And in the meantime, we are fully committed to making RefugeeWork a continued success. To be continued!

 Any questions? Don't hesitate to contact us at info@refugeetalenthub.com.