Pathways to work for Roma in Europe

Roma refers to people described as, or who describe themselves, in various ways eg Gypsies, Tzigane, Travellers, Manouches, and Sinti[1]. The term covers a diverse range of communities with different languages, cultures and histories that tend to share similar lifestyles and face similar challenges – many are nomadic or semi-nomadic and experience discrimination and exclusion.

The European Union Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005- 2015[2] puts into action the commitment of European governments to improve outcomes for Roma communities in areas like health care, social welfare, education, employment and housing. Although the decade has witnessed positive changes as a result of targeted policy and funding, Roma communities continue to experience disadvantage and remain on the margins of society compared to non-Roma communities.

This paper examines the situation of Roma communities in education, training and employment across European countries. It shows how disadvantage occurs and persists from the early years through to post-secondary education and training and employment. By considering economic, fiscal and human rights perspectives it argues that the situation of Roma in Europe is not tenable. It then considers interventions to improve pathways to work for Roma which have potential relevance across different country and community contexts.

Download the paper on http://www.skillsdevelopment.org.uk/pdf/Roma%20Pathways%20to%20Employment%20Europe.pdf

Footnotes

[1]Roma is the general umbrella term used by a range of international and national bodies/organisations working on behalf of these diverse communities. In line with this, the term Roma is also adopted in this paper.
[2]The founding partner organisations of the decade are: the World Bank, the Open Society Foundations, the United Nations Development Program, the Council of Europe, Council of Europe Development Bank, the Contact Point for Roma and Sinti Issues of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the European Roma Information Office, the European Roma and Traveller Forum, and the European Roma Rights Centre, UN-HABITAT, UNHCR, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). See www.romadecade.org/about(Retrieved 20 July 2011) for more information.

Link: http://www.skillsdevelopment.org.uk/knowledge_portal/position_papers/pathways_to_work_for_roma_in.aspx