Employment for Immigrants

Our EPIC Programme provides the opportunity for immigrants in Ireland to become financially independent and more socially integrated by entering employment or further education and training

Dates: Next training starts on Monday May 20th, 2013

Immigrants arriving in Ireland face significant barriers to integrate within Irish society. Cultural differences, lack of recognition of qualifications and prior learning and the need for general orientation to the labour market are some of their key challenges.

Employment and education are key factors in promoting integration of immigrants, who comprise the above 12%, into Irish society. Immigrants looking for employment and/or education recognise the lack of Irish work experience, interview preparation and the understanding of the Irish standards when preparing CV and Cover letter as strong obstacles to succeed in their applications.

Our EPIC Programme is a unique initiative in Dublin only which to date has impacted the lives of over 1300 people from 93 nationalities. 69% of our clients have found jobs or entered training or are volunteering.

EPIC brings huge benefits to clients in terms of improving their English, their job seeking skills, raising their motivation and confidence, increasing their understanding of Irish culture and the work environment; building their networks and promoting overall social integration.

BT, CPL, Ericsson, Matheson & Bank of Ireland are key business partners for this initiative. EPIC also works in cooperation with Cairde, Citizens Information Service, Dublin City North Volunteer Centre, The Equality Authority and the INOU. Our partners provide their expertise for the training and also work placements for our target group.

The programme was set up in response to a decision made in 2005 by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The Minister announced a scheme to grant temporary residency for two years to those individuals who were Parents of Irish Born Children born in Ireland before the 1^st of January 2005 who did not have Irish citizenship. Following this two year period the applicant must demonstrate that they have taken steps towards becoming economically independent in the State in order to maintain residency.

For this reason, it was decided to develop a project that would support people in this group to access employment, training and education. The programme started as a pilot in 2006 and due to its success, the target group was enlarged to include all legally resident EU and non-EU adults who have permission to work in Ireland and would like to access employment or education.

The EPIC programme is funded by the Office for the Promotion of Migrant Integration (formerly the Office of the Minister for Integration) under the Department of Justice and Equality and co-financed under the European Social Fund Human Capital Operational Programme 2007-2013.

How it works

There are two main elements to EPIC, the first is a six week training module, the second is one to one individual support with a Training and Employment Officer.

Training module:

• Pre Employment and English for Work Training (3 weeks) – CV and cover letter writing techniques; identifying and describing skills; telephone skills for job interviews and in the workplace; advice on how to look for a job
• Interview Skills Training (1 week)-intensive interview preparation including different tips, skills and techniques. Each client attends a mock interview with CPL, a leading Dublin based recruitment agency
• Living and Working in Ireland Training (2 weeks) – information sessions on a variety of themes to facilitate networking, understanding of the Irish system and to promote social integration. Topics covered include employment rights and entitlements, social welfare, access to education and healthcare
• IT Skills Training (2 days) –focusing on the use of Microsoft Office Word, Excel and PowerPoint. This is supported by BT
• Using Social Media to find employment. This is supported by Ericsson

Download the EPIC Programme Training Schedule 2013 (PDF 0.3MB)

One-To-One Individual Support with TEOs:

Training and Employment Officers (TEOs) with expertise and wide experience in career advice and job placement provide one-to-one support sessions on the various steps in seeking new employment or education.

They support with CV and interview preparation, psychometric testing, coaching for interviews as well as working with the participant to source and secure further education or employment.

Other benefits:

• Social Support – advice on Social Welfare, housing, family and other issues
• Work experience placements
• Mentoring service
• Advice for entrepreneurs
• Free access to computers for online job searching
• Certificate of Participation upon completion of the Training

Eligibility:

Participants must first meet three essential criteria in order to be accepted for EPIC

• Status – Participants must be adults from EU states entitled to work in Ireland and those from non-EU states with Stamp 4
• Location – As our EPIC Programme is based in Dublin, participants must be based in Dublin or the Dublin Greater Area
• Level of English – In order to participate, it is essential that participants have intermediate to high level of both written and spoken English. Participants will have their English assessed prior to beginning the training

For further information please contact:
Caitríona Mac Aonghusa/Catherine Headon
Joint Co-ordinators
EPIC Programme
30/31 Lower O’Connell Street, Dublin 1
T: 01 874 3840/01 874 3841
E: epic@bitc.ie

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Download The EPIC Programme Information Sheet 2013 (PDF 0.3MB)