Increasing employment among vulnerable groups – summary of insights and recommendations for the Nordic countries

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The Nordic Council of Ministers wants to improve the employment prospects of vulnerable groups in the labour market and has therefore commissioned the project Toward a More Inclusive Labour Market in the Nordics to provide policymakers and practitioners with evidence-based guidance and cross-Nordic inspiration.

This report marks the completion of the project Towards a More Inclusive Labour Market and aims to summarize the key findings from the project and present 12 evidence-based recommendations to enhance labour market inclusion for vulnerable groups in the Nordic countries.

The recommendation are structured into four policy tracks and are accompanied by concrete Nordic examples of signature projects that successfully integrate key elements of these recommendations. The four tracks are:

  • 1. A more flexible and barrier-centric system, which is a set of recommendations outlining paths and proposals for increasing flexibility, fostering evidence-based initiatives, promoting knowledge sharing, and leveraging technology to optimise outcomes for individuals facing significant employment barriers.
  • 2. Create flexible programmes for complex challenges, which highlights the need for innovative, holistic strategies that address employment barriers simultaneously or in the right sequence, prioritise employment-focused initiatives that closely mirror real job conditions, and emphasise vocational education with transferable certification.
  • 3. Create good relations, confidence, and motivation, which contains recommendations that highlight the importance of creating inclusive systems that empower individuals and their caseworkers, emphasising relationship building and a supportive framework that motivates vulnerable individuals to engage in employment or education.
  • 4. Getting companies on board, which underscores the importance of equipping employers with the tools, knowledge, and support needed to foster inclusion

This project is funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers and is conducted in partnership with VIVE - The Danish Center for Social Science Research.

You can read the fifth publication in the project here: "Increasing employment among vulnerable groups - summary of insights and recommendations for the Nordic countries"

If you are interested, you can find the other publications from the project below:

 

Contact

ANDREAS HØJBJERRE

ANDREAS HØJBJERRE

PARTNER, M.SC. (ECONOMICS)