At the sharp end: the economic recession
The global response
With A4e forging ahead as something of a leader in
global social policy, we take a look at the effect the
recession is having across its international network
T
he economic slowdown is big news in
the UK, and has been for many months.
People are worried about losing their jobs,
how their savings are performing and
whether or not the housing market will ever pick up
again. They’re worried that things just won’t ever be
the same again.
But it’s not just here in the UK that the jobs
market is facing a slowdown. While we may be
familiar with news stateside regarding the US
economy, we don’t often see many reports on how
other countries across the globe are faring.
With more and more people facing redundancies
worldwide, it’s more important than ever to tackle
A4eSum09 pp11-13 Global.indd 11
the problem head-on, and to find ways to encourage
businesses to keep staff in employment – or create
new jobs.
Boosting job skills
Roy Newey, Group Board Director, is responsible
for international development at A4e. He’s
witnessed first-hand how training programmes
have helped people in various countries to boost
their job skills and employability, and believes that
tackling the global problem head-on is part of A4e’s
responsibility as an international business.
‘It’s all about getting other organisations and
ourselves to share best practice, and to promote an
appropriate way of working with individuals across
the globe,’ he explains. ‘If we didn’t step up to that,
then there’s the possibility that nobody would.
‘When we talk about being the global leaders
of social policy, we see ourselves as being
the champion of those people who are most
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 At the sharp end: the economic recession
disadvantaged, and although the set-ups in various We’re not a political organisation, and we’re
parts of the world are different, the issues that affect
people are similar. There are many organisations
that are doing a great job in their own area, and the
leadership role gives us the opportunity to bring
these teams together to improve the delivery of a
service in a local area.
‘When we look at the different services we can
offer people around the world, we use the same
core principles in each country. We make sure the
services are relevant and have a local fit.’
One example of creating a ‘local fit’ is the work
that A4e is doing in Jerusalem. The company is
helping people gain new skills, restoring their
confidence and self-esteem, and helping them to
align themselves with talents that are attractive to
the local employer base. ‘There’s no point training
someone in a great new skill with a certificate if it’s
not marketable or valued by the local authorities,’
explains Newey.
‘We’re not a political organisation and we’re not
a religious-based organisation, which means that
we’ve been able to support the Muslims, Arabs,
Christians, Jews and the Orthodox Jews, and bring
BEACON OF LIGHT
It’s clear that the recession is affecting countries
in very different ways. In Poland, because A4e’s
programmes are being supported by the European
Social Fund, things haven’t changed, as Katarzyna
Jaszczuk, Business Development Manager, explains.
‘We have operations in two regions, and the
recession hasn’t really affected the amount of funds
we have available,’ she says. ‘In comparison to
other countries, Poland is doing quite well. Most of our
products are exported and companies still have orders
to fulfil, so they’re OK.
‘The second quarter of the year will be worse, but at the moment, our recruiter in
Szczecin is still able to find jobs for clients. Of course, there is a change of attitude
in the employers and I think they are being more cautious, but it’s not as bad as
people think.’
them together in a way which is really quite magical
in Jerusalem.’
Before training takes place, A4e has to identify
and review the local employer base to find out what
the labour market needs are – whether it’s in Delhi,
Jerusalem or Manchester – and develop a social
network of employers to find out what specific skills
and experiences they find attractive.
However, in some areas it’s necessary to deliver
schemes that are more skills-orientated. For
instance, in India there’s a real need to provide a
healthy range of skills to help individuals become
employable – or valuable to employers. In Germany,
however, the situation is the complete opposite.
12 blueprint summer 2009
A4eSum09 pp11-13 Global.indd 12
not a religious-based organisation
roy newey, a4e Group board director
Very often, job-seekers in Germany possess a whole
mountain of qualifications. Likewise, in Israel, for
instance, the norm is for people to have two degrees.
‘People may have the academic qualifications,
they even have the vocational qualifications, but
more often than not, they have completely lost their
confidence and self-esteem,’ says Newey. ‘In the
countries where there is a more developed skills-
base, our work is less about skills and more about
restoring people’s confidence.’
Delayed impact
Over the last few years, A4e has expanded into
countries such as France, Poland, Germany, India
and Israel, and has recently been awarded an
employment services contract in Australia.
Shula Kentwell, CEO for A4e Australia, says
that the recession is having a delayed impact in
Australia compared to the UK. ‘Like the rest of the
world, the country is going through very interesting
times,’ she says, ‘and a new employment service is
being created, with a complete overhaul of the way
in which employment services are being delivered.
While it was designed at time when most people
were in full employment and the economic situation
was very different, these reforms are needed more
than ever and will result in better services for job
seekers and the employers who need skilled workers
in this country.’
Unemployment in Australia is on the increase.
Within the last 12 months, unemployment figures
have risen from below four per cent to 5.7 per cent,
and it’s expected to exceed seven per cent by 2010.
Despite the fact that the government is putting
measures in place to manage the situation, there are
big concerns.
The new system, Job Services Australia (JSA), is due
to commence on 1 July and will replace the previous
JobNetwork and other programs that were considered
by many to be outdated, fragmented and confusing
for jobseekers. The new JSA will bring seven
programs into one, which will mean that jobseekers
can access a ‘one stop shop’ type of service.
According to Kentwell, the reforms have been
designed to create a much stronger and clearer
link between employment services and the
government’s skills and productivity agenda.
‘Job Services Australia will provide job seekers
with more opportunities to acquire skills, and
provide them with flexible, personalised support to
help them gain and keep a job,’ she says.
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istock © Nathalie Hedström
A4e follows the same core ‘The recession is hitting different types of workers,
principles whether helping people
find work in India or the UK. and we are seeing an influx of Australians returning
from overseas to find work, as well as many newly-
retrenched workers. Under the new system, we will
be providing specific support to this group as well
as our more traditional client base.’
Being a new entrant to the market is always
challenging, as Kentwell explains. ‘We are delighted
We are seeing an influx of Australians
returning from overseas to find work
shula kentwell, ceo, A4e australia
to have won this contract, but the hard work really
starts now. Australia is a place where you have
to prove yourself through actions and results.
People want to know what you’re going to do in
their country. The fact that it’s got its own unique
challenges make it even more interesting. You’ve
got a mix of people with longer-term barriers to
A4eSum09 pp11-13 Global.indd 13
At the sharp end: the economic recession
employment, plus a climate with lots of highly-
qualified people suddenly looking for work.
‘We are continuing to work hard to build up
partnerships with local community organisations
to deliver our service, which will be complemented
by those organisations that have been providing
valuable services closer to the ground for a long
period. We’ve done a lot of the groundwork, but
there is always much to be done. A4e has a sound
track record in working in new countries, so our
experience will stand us in good stead.’
The big issue
In other countries, the focus is less on giving people
vocational skills and more on providing literacy and
numeracy skills. The big problem in South Africa,
according to Newey, is that a lot of people missed
out on a basic level of education, so A4e’s task will
be to rebuild this when the service agreement is up
and running.
Crime is also a big issue in South Africa, and
as a consequence, there are a lot of people caught
up in the justice system – and the prisons are
very crowded. ‘We’re looking at developing three
centres of excellence in South Africa, as well as
working in the prisons to give prisoners vocational
and employability skills,’ says Newey. ‘Our key
mission in South Africa is about working with black,
unemployed youth who also have a prison record, or
who are still serving a prison sentence.’
In Jerusalem, Amin Ltd runs the national
programme for employment enhancement. It’s a
partnership between A4e and the Israeli Aman
company, and began in 2005. Despite the economic
crisis, over the last six months it has implemented
around 650 job placements.
However, the increase in the number of people
returning to the employment centre reflects the
impact of the economic state on the employment
in the city. There’s also a decrease in demand
for employees in the city and its surroundings.
According to Amin, since most of the employers in
Jerusalem are within governmental and institutional
sectors, the number of people losing their jobs is
smaller than in other areas, where employers are
mainly from the private or third sector.
The core of what A4e does, according to Newey,
is improving people’s lives. ‘That sits right at the
centre of what we do. We are happy to work with any
organisation on a partnership basis around the world,
and that has led us into lots of really interesting and
exciting partnerships in various countries.
‘We always recruit a local workforce, so it’s not
about taking 100 people from the UK and asking
them to deliver programmes to South Africa, for
instance. This is about recruiting a local labour
force, and giving them new skills and talents.’
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