France Travail experiment to remove obstacles to employment in Reunion

The advantage of deploying the system in different territories is also to note the specificities of each of them. Certain points were highlighted before the experiment. The island has a much larger volume than others in terms of unemployed people, major problems in terms of matching people to market needs, a higher rate of illiteracy among RSA beneficiaries than other territories, “it also means that our support will certainly be longer than in other territories”comments the regional director.

With an unemployment rate of 17.2% on the island, the other territories also have proportionally greater labor needs than Reunion.

In the department, the Pôle emploi services also identify three major obstacles to employment. It is on these recurring difficulties among RSA beneficiaries on the island that the various actors in the system will have to work together.

First blocking point, childcare, which particularly affects Reunion women: “We are sorely lacking in places today. We are working with structures”, says Angelique Goodall. The actors of France Travail work here to obtain places reserved for people looking for work who would be in training or at the start of a contract.

The second obstacle noted is that of mobility, a determining factor for access to employment on the island. The problem is also very noticeable in the Trois Bassins area. thereupon, “we will work with communities to try to find public transport systems, carpooling (…), offer driving licenses as part of training”, she adds.

Finally, the Reunionese furthest from employment often lack qualifications. On this issue, the Pôle Emploi intends, among the possible levers, to engage companies more willingly by encouraging them to accept a profile that is not directly in line with their search and to make the choice to invest in the training of the employee. .