Three employment assistance projects will be launched in October to help jobless social-security recipients rejoin the workforce, the Social Welfare Department says. The move will also help achieve the objective of moving from welfare to work. The projects will help about 14,850 unemployed.

Non-governmental organisations have been commissioned to run the projects - the two-year fourth batch of Intensive Employment Assistance Projects and the District Employment Assistance Trial Project, and the one-year My STEP - Special Training & Enhancement Programme.

The department has launched 105 Intensive Employment Assistance Projects in four years. By the end of July, more than 34,000 participants, including social security recipients and other able-bodied unemployed, have joined the programme. More than 45% of them found full-time employment. About 40% of social security participants have cut their reliance on welfare as a result of taking up paid work.

Wide range of assistance

In view of the encouraging results, an additional sum of $60 million was announced by the Financial Secretary in his 2006-07 Budget Speech to extend the projects for another two years. The 40 projects of the fourth batch will offer a wide range of employment-assistance services, such as job matching, employment counselling, job skills training, and post-placement support.

While the jobless rate and social-security caseload have stabilised following the economy's recovery, the department is still concerned with the challenges, like low education and lax job skills, faced by long-term unemployed, particularly jobless youths. The department will launch District Employment Assistance Trial Projects in Tin Shui Wai, Tsuen Wan and Tung Chung to help these people. The projects will provide more targeted assistance, including job attachment, job-related skills and sector-specific training, counselling services, job matching, and a one-off $1,500 return-to-work incentive.

My STEP is another trial employment assistance project aimed to serve unemployed welfare recipients aged 15 to 24 in Tin Shui Wai and Yuen Long. Most of the youths not only lack work experience and self-confidence, but are also low in motivation. The project's training courses cover motivational elements tailor-made for participants.

Through the experience learned from the motivational programmes and through arranging job attachments and job placements, participants will be assisted in taking up employment to prevent them from relying on social security for a longer period.