Training “Diversity in the Workplace”

Training for companies has now also taken place in Austria.

In the Mirage project we want to promote the integration of third-country nationals into the labour market. Many companies are interested to employ people with a refugee or migration background, but feel uncertain or discouraged by the legal hurdles. For this reason, we have created a support offer for companies in Austria, as we have already in other countries of the Mirage project.

On May 10 and 11, our online training “Diversity in the Workplace” took place in cooperation with lobby.16 and the Volkshochschule Wien. We decided on the online format because of the Corona pandemic. It had the advantage that 14 employers and HR managers from all over Austria and even from our big neighbour Germany could participate in the seminar. Over two half-days they dealt with the question of how inclusion can be lived in the workplace, what opportunities a diverse working environment offers and how barriers can be overcome.

Our diversity trainer Volker Frey used interactive methods to introduce the participants to the topic. The participants took a closer look at their own identity and took on the roles of people with refugee experience. Together they talked about expectations and fears regarding the employment of third-country nationals.

For the second half-day, we invited Ms. Wuzella, who, as the human resources manager at an electrical installation company in Austria, already has a lot of experience with the integration of apprentices with refugee experience. She was available to answer the participants’ questions. This exchange with an expert from the field turned out to be the highlight of the seminar.

At the end of the training, the participants rated their knowledge as well as their skills and competences in relation to diversity in the workplace much better than before. They now feel confident in applying what they have learned in their professional roles.

There will be another opportunity to participate in our seminar on September 29 and 30.

Picture credit: wocinthechat.com