Social Firm Junuv Statek
Country
Czech Republic
Description
The social firm offers housing and catering services and disposes of 25 working places, which convey to people with mental illness, who do not master very well the conditions of free labour market. Working positions are adapted to possibilities and competences of individual clients.
Aims
To offer a working place to people with mental illness, to integrate them into society, and to offer a safe place for work.
Areas
Employment
Effectiveness
There are 25 work places for people with a health handicap (psychiatric diagnosis). For a period of operation of the social firm there were 41 clients employmed. During this period there were 6 clients who left for non-sheltered working places; there are still 10 clients employed for 5 to 7 years.
Sustainability
Finances are obtained from grants and foundations. Financial resources: own resources (29%), the rest from foundations.
For starting the activities of the social firm there is need to study the local labour market, and considering the possibilities of the target group with regard to future working possibilities of the clients.
Innovation
Before establishing the social firm, supply for the target group was time limited (supply was focused mainly at working rehabilitation in sheltered workshops). After the rehabilitation, clients had problems to find an employment and if they were successful only a small percentage stayed in employment for a longer time period.
The social firm now offers employment in normal working conditions, without any time limits. Working places are adapted to clients´ possibilities and their working progress (for example to completely non-sheltered conditions) is being held naturally in accordance to their capabilities and abilities.
Added Value
The social firm follows-up the functioning of training institutions and sheltered workshops. Clients of these training schemes have sometimes problems to integrate into the mainstream, non-sheltered job market. The social firm is able to give working fulfillment and possibility of working as well as personal growth.
Transferability
The social firm supplements the casual commercial firm in one way - the employment of people with mental health problems. So, this model should be very easy to transfer to different countries with developed enterpriser background. The basic idea is to employ people, who are handicapped in the mainstream labour market, giving them equal opportunities. It offers a possibility to use the working potential of the healthy handicapped, to lower their dependence for state support and to integrate them into normal life. This kind of integration, through providing employment on a continuous basis, lower the financial and personal requests of state support as well as it enhances integration.
Mainstreaming Potential
The social firm follows-up the usual business background in the Czech Republic, with adding one social element - the employment of people with mental health problems. The effort of every firm is to generate enough financial resources for their own activities. Financial and personal expenses and expenses for integration of people who suffer from social exclusion are lower than in the usual sheltered working places. The social firm strives to lower its dependence from state subsidy, to be as self-sufficient as possible. It lowers at the same time dependency from social grants and state subvention.
The social firm became at the same time an important cultural and social partner of the city Sedlec (location of the social firm).
Costs of the Project
4.988.000 crowns (ca. 180.000 Euros) in 2005.
People involved in the Project (number of people and profession)
The team of the Social firm consists of 9 people (7 full-time and 2 part-time). They are professionals working in different areas (cook, waiter, electrician, service man etc). All of them are at the same time educated for work with people with mental illness.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Project
This project has facilitated social integration and de-stigmatisation. People with mental health problems enter employment, initially only for a short period, but if it works, people stay to work for longer time.
Contact Person for the Project
Pavel Novákfocus@fokus-praha.cz
www.fokus-praha.cz