Clear words

“Diversity must finally arrive on the labor market”

Thomas (right) is one of 107 applicants taking part in the Inclusion Week at the Billa Plus store in Ansfelden.

(Bild: Billa AG/Flohner Fotografie)

"Everyone is very friendly, it's great, thank you" - that's what applicants say who are getting a taste of the Billa plus store in Ansfelden these days. As part of Inclusion Week, the food retail chain is giving people with disabilities the chance to gain a foothold in the job market.

There is a clear commitment within the company, positive feedback from customers - and the response from applicants is also excellent! "It's a showcase model that calls for imitators," said Provincial Councillor for Social Affairs Christian Dörfel on Wednesday on the occasion of Inclusion Week, which is taking place at the Billa Plus store in Ansfelden until Friday.

107 people with disabilities have registered for a taster in the store, which belongs to the Rewe Group. "Some only stay for a day, others for the whole week," says Billa sales manager Michael Prutsch.

"Inclusion Week is an important step towards offering people with disabilities career prospects," says Billa Sales Director Thomas Steingruber (right).

(Bild: Billa AG/Flohner Fotografie)

Dörfel reported on the great interest in the newly introduced inclusion grant. 40 companies would be prepared to take on employees via this route. Eight employees have already found a job in the primary labor market: "33 more are in the process of doing so." According to the politician, the organizational effort is great.

"Companies need to prepare employees for this"
The employment of people with disabilities has a very positive effect on the working atmosphere, he emphasized. "But companies have to prepare their employees for this," explained Dörfel. Tapping into new potential groups, as Claus Jungkunz from con tour gmbH, the operator of Betriebsservice Oberösterreich, describes it, is now indispensable. "Diversity must finally arrive on the job market," emphasized Michaela Billinger, head of the AMS office in Traun for Linz-Land.

In any case, the statistics clearly show that the number of job seekers with disabilities is rising sharply. Of the 6468 jobseekers recently registered with the AMS in the Linz-Land district, more than 1000 had a disability that was verified by a medical certificate.