- You are the director of the Lleida Employment Office. What services do you provide to citizens and businesses?
Regarding
citizens,
job applications. Collecting applications from individuals who contact us is our main task, as it allows us to offer personalized, comprehensive, and inclusive employment guidance services, and the rest of the services from the new Service Portfolio of the National Employment System, which is developed by State Law 3/2023, of February 28, on Employment.
We also provide services in processing and monitoring labor insertion agreements for the Guaranteed Citizenship Income.
Regarding
businesses, we primarily offer
services related to labor intermediation. These services typically involve information and advice on topics such as the reserve quota for workers with disabilities in companies, among others.
- How do you see the evolution of employment in Lleida? What are the profiles of unemployed groups in the region?
In terms of the province,
Social Security affiliations show us that we have a highly tertiarized economy (87% compared to the Catalan average of 79.2%), which has increased since last year. We have also seen a small rise in affiliations in the industrial sector, but even so, this segment of the population (5.5%) remains much lower than the Catalan average (13.75%).
Our labor market
hinders the participation of groups with special difficulties in finding employment, as is the case in other territories of Catalonia, and also affects the quality of employment. In the agricultural sector, for example, which is characterized by its seasonal nature, we face the great difficulty for companies to fill job vacancies, and on the other hand, the impossibility for workers to enjoy job stability.
According to data from the Labor and Productive Model Observatory as of June 30,
the most numerous profile of registered unemployed individuals is those aged 45 and over (59%). Within this group, it should be noted that 59% are women, 50% have been registered for more than 12 months, and 85% have an educational level of ESO (compulsory secondary education) or lower.
- What is your relationship with businesses in the region? Which job offers are the most difficult to fill?
Since the pandemic, our relationship with businesses has primarily been remote and by phone.
We are aware of the important role of businesses in the field of employment and, within the limits of our possibilities and resources, we strive to provide personalized support during their management.
The SOC has a
Business Services Area, and in our region, we have two colleagues we can rely on when businesses require advisory services.
It should be noted that we have recently made progress in approaching
some business associations in our district, and with these, the relationship is more continuous. We seek opportunities to meet and share concerns and challenges.
The offers that are most difficult for us to fill are those related to trades in carpentry, welding, industrial maintenance, hairdressing, hospitality, agriculture… and also those aimed at young qualified professionals.
- What is your role in the implementation of active employment policies? How do you collaborate with local entities?
We collaborate with entities at different stages: when they have not yet decided which call for applications they would like to submit; when they need to execute the program; and also when, once the program is finished, they encounter incidents that we can resolve or channel.
Our current role is to act as a referral agent for job seekers to active policies. Specifically, the office’s guidance staff, within the occupational pathway, advises users on which occupational action or service they could undertake to increase their employability and achieve their professional goal.
- Does the office process unemployment capitalization for entrepreneurship? How many people apply for it? What is their profile?
Indeed, at the Employment Offices, we receive and process capitalization requests, and SEPE (Public State Employment Service) ultimately resolves them. Since the beginning of the year,
we have processed 116 applications. In 2023, there were about 200, and in 2022, 192.
It should be noted that, among the people who tell us that their professional project includes entrepreneurship as an option, we assist individuals who are not recipients of the benefit and therefore cannot capitalize. For these individuals, and for those who can capitalize,
we refer them to entities that are part of Catalunya Emprèn, such as Autoocupació, so that they can receive subsidized advice.
The profile of people who capitalize
are mainly individuals who want to register as self-employed, in the service sector, who request 100% of the benefit to make initial investments.
- Our motto is “I am what I want to be.” And you, are you?
At many times, I think I am, because I have always wanted to work to make life easier for those around me, and
working in an employment office means being alongside many people, and for me, it has been very rewarding all the years I have worked as an intermediation technician and counselor.
As a director, after 3 years, I think I am starting to be what I would like: a person who firmly believes that teamwork makes us more creative, that promoting a work environment based on trust and respect among colleagues improves the work climate, and a person who tries to lead by example.
What I do know for sure is that
I would never want to lose the inspiration or motivation to be, even if just a little, like Atticus Finch from the novel To Kill a Mockingbird.
