In the context of the war in Ukraine 16 UN Moldova agency and programs with presence in the country have quickly mobilized their forces and in coordination with the Government of the Republic of Moldova and the UN Refugee Agency, the UN leading agency of the Ukraine Refugee Response Plan, provided immediate support to persons from Ukraine who had taken refuge in the Republic of Moldova. As of today, over 250,000 people from Ukraine have crossed the country's border, out of which over 100,000 remained in Moldova, these numbers being in continuous rise as the military actions intensify. Almost 90% of the total number of refugees are women with children – one of the most vulnerable group of persons being highly exposed to different risks and challenges. In order to provide immediate assistance to refugees from Ukraine, a number of UN agencies, including IOM, OHCHR, UNDP, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNODC, UN Women, WHO and others, have taken visits at the border crossing points between Moldova and Ukraine as well to first temporary shelters put in place to assess the humanitarian needs. To date, the UN Moldova team has provided the following types of assistance: Personal hygiene products, medicines and medical equipment, food packages – dignity kits, diapers, wet wipes, disinfectants, essential medicine and food packages, provided by IOM, ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women, WHO; Information materials for refugees: leaflets with information needed for refugees, distributed upon entry into the country, provided by IOM, UN Women; Crisis Communication Support for the Single Center for Refugee Crisis Management in Ukraine: UNDP Protective equipment against COVID19: masks, disinfectants, provided by WHO Accommodation / items required for accommodation: support for temporary accommodation in NCTUM resorts, tent heaters, tents, mobile shower cabins, lamps and lighting equipment, beds, mattresses, blankets provided by IOM, ILO, UNDP, UNODC, UNHCR; Equipment for basic needs of relevant authorities: computers, scanners, work equipment provided by IOM Monitoring border crossings and temporary shelters / shelters by OHCHR and UNHCR to identify refugee needs, as well as to identify potential gaps in the national support system and make proposals for their removal. The total value of the support offered as of March 6 is estimated to be over 1,5 million lei, funds provided by the UN agencies and projects funded by the EU, Switzerland, Sweden and other development partners. The United Nations in Moldova is in a continuous process of coordination with central and local authorities to address the needs of refugees. At the same time, the United Nations is also grateful to all citizens of the Republic of Moldova who have mobilized so quickly and have shown generosity, solidarity and humanity towards refugees from Ukraine. The acronyms used in the press release: UN - United Nations IOM - International Organization for Migration ILO - International Labor Organization OHCHR - UN Office for Human Rights UNDP - United Nations Development Program UNHCR - UN Refugee Agency UNFPA - UN Population Fund UNICEF - UN Children's Fund UN Women - UN Entity for Gender Equality UNODC - UN Office on Drugs and Crime WHO - World Health Organization EU - European Union NCTUM - National Confederation of Trade Unions from Moldova

They live in the Calarasi region of the Republic of Moldova. After the end of maternity leave, the Ralea couple wanted to change their area of activity and to start a business together that would bring them a stable income. „We decided to start a business, here, at home. We chose to produce covers for musical instruments and bags for photo-video equipment. The beginning was difficult because we did not have experience. We started everything from scratch: bought new equipment, without understanding too much about it, procured raw material at an exaggerated price, etc. There were many questions every day, but the enormous desire to create something beautiful and useful helped us to overcome all the complications", says Alionusca Ralea. The subsidy the young entrepreneur couple received in the amount of 76 thousand lei (3,700 EUR) granted by the National Employment Agency (NEA) helped them to stabilize their fledgling company. “We learned from the specialists of Calarasi Employment Department about the subsidy programs for employers who want to hire and integrate persons with difficulties in finding jobs. We applied to this program and obtained the financial assistance to develop our business and create jobs", explains Alionusca. Thanks to the subsidy from NEA, the young couple rented a space within the Business Incubator located in Calarasi town, where they also received help and crucial information regarding the development of their business. "Now we have modern equipment, which allows us to produce quality goods and facilitates the production process. says Vitalie Ralea. The covers and bags created in the family workshop are of high quality, thanks to the quality fabrics and accessories they use. The owners are focussed on details and meeting customers’ demands, therefore arrange for the delivery of their goods, too. In the future, the Raleas want to become undisputed leaders in this business area, and to turn into reliable partners of their customers, as well as to be able to export their goods.   The subsidies offered by the NEA represent an active employment measure, that is, an instrument to bring hard-to-employ people back to the world of work. The Law on Employment and Unemployment Insurance provides for the subsidies, which is being tested this year with the assistance of the ILO in the Republic of Moldova.  The ILO is working with NEA as a partner in developing and implementing employment policies.

Disability is an obstacle, a huge one, but the human spirit is resilient, and one has to keep going forward”. Read the story of Elena Epuri, a worker with a disability at Steinel Electronics in Chisinau, Moldova. She found a great job she loves because of the new Employment Law and a wage subsidy scheme created an opportunity for her. The ILO provided the technical assistance for these reforms and measures. Elena was born in Chisinau, the capital of the Republic of Moldova. As a child, she was diagnosed with infantile cerebral palsy. Despite long years of medical treatment, her mobility could never be restored in full.

Yet Elena was not inclined to sit at home and waste away. She dreamed of becoming educated and finding a job. She went to two professional schools where she specialized in computer and postal operations. Despite these qualifications, Elena had trouble finding work for many years after graduation. “Some employers were sceptical about my physical abilities and lack of working experience,” recalls Elena, “but more often it was a lack of adaptations in the workplace or long commuting distances that prevented me from finding work.” After years of searching in vain, despair and disappointment took their toll on her, but she never gave up. When her son Maxim was born, Elena felt blessed and loved. Time passed, and when Maxim was nearly two years old, she felt that it was time to start looking for work again. Elena’s mother had passed away long before Maxim was born. Without her mother’s support, there was only her father to count on, and she did not want to be a burden on him. She needed a job badly, but no matter how hard she tried, she could not find one.

One day Elena was advised to reach out to the National Employment Agency (NEA).

“The day I knocked at their door was the luckiest day in my life,” Elena professed. “I was interviewed, I filled out a couple of forms and I left. A few days later, I heard back from the office. I was given the name of a company and told where to go for an interview. Believe it or not, I was hired the same week I first visited Steinel Electronic. Returning home with my first labour contract in hand, I felt like I was in seventh heaven. I had feelings of excitement and hope that were new to me. I never miss a day of work. Each time that I pick up Maxim from kindergarten, I tell him that his mom is back from work to take him home.”

The Republic of Moldova has the lowest employment rates in the region, hovering around 40 per cent over the last two decades. The employment rate of people with disabilities (PwDs) is much lower, at just 17 per cent in recent years, slightly higher for women. Every third person with disability works in agriculture and is highly exposed to precarious working conditions and low chances for career development. Although economic growth is mostly concentrated in Moldova’s urban areas, the unemployment rate of PwDs in cities is double than the rural one. It reached nearly 6 per cent in recent years. While apparently low, the figure can be misleading as it tells little about the many discouraged workers among PwDs, who do not even try to find a job any more.

To strengthen Moldova’s labour market and improve workers’ livelihoods, both legislative reforms and practical measures are essential, and Moldova therefore enacted a new Employment Promotion Law in 2019. The ILO was provided technical assistance for the reforms. The new law promotes a portfolio of active labour market measures (ALMMs) designed to address the diverse challenges unemployed people like Elena face -- i.e. lack of skills and/or work experience, low productivity, employer discrimination, etc. The measures are directed to active jobseekers, as well as to the discouraged unemployed and to employers. They include training and retraining, traineeships, wage subsidies, self-employment opportunities, and local employment initiatives. Starting in 2019, the Public Employment Service piloted five ALMMs with ILO financial support, including a wage subsidy scheme for which Steinel Electronic applied.

Steinel Electronic opened its doors in Moldova in 2007 with a production factory of the German company, specialised in sensor systems, sensor-switched lighting and heat tools. The factory is located in Chisinau and employs 320 workers. Of these, 27 have various degrees of disability. 14 out of 27 PwDs were employed with the support of NEA through the wage subsidy pilot funded by the ILO, Elena is among them. Ten employees joined the company in 2020, at a time when many other workers in Moldova lost their jobs due to the COVID -19 pandemic. The wage subsidy scheme compensates the employer for the extra costs of hiring PwDs, and the Government subsidizes their wages in the first six months of work. This subsidy is equal to 30 per cent of the average wage in the economy. In return, the employer makes a commitment to maintain the worker in employment for at least 12 months.

Elena has been employed for nearly 26 months now, and she is happy. From her first day at Steinel Electronic, she has received training courses on effective assembling processes, occupational safety and health, and environmental protection. During her first month on the job, she also received individual coaching. The company provides daily transportation services to Elena and her colleagues. Her co-workers are always available to offer advice or a helping hand when needed. When her father passed away, they reached out to support her.

“We first hired workers with disabilities many years ago to reinforce our social responsibly culture, as well as to comply with the requirements of Moldovan law,” recalls Clementina Saratean, head of Steinel human resources department. “At least 5 per cent of our jobs have to be reserved for PwDs, this is how the Moldovan law reads. Yet, after some time passed, we realized workers with disabilities can be equally skilful, responsive, and, what’s very important, they are extremely loyal. The turnover among workers with disabilities is the lowest in our company. Eight per cent of our workers have various types of disabilities. We even hired a sign interpreter on a permanent basis to help the deaf colleagues. We are not going to stop here, more people like Elena will be offered the opportunity to join us.”

In 2020, Steinel Electronic was awarded the “Best Employer of People with Disability”. The selection was made by NEA.

“Employment is about more than just a pay check,” according to Elena. “It is about achieving and maintaining independence, self-confidence and paying back your family. Things have changed in the last two years. I’ve got a job, and Maxim again has a mother full of beautiful dreams. One of my dreams has already been fulfilled with the help of NEA and ILO, and now another, very different one is coming true - Maxim is good at breakdancing.” Elena’s smile is warm and wide. “As I said, there are many different ways we can see our dreams fulfilled.”

Prior to that, she worked for many years in a sanatorium. She really wanted to capitalize the accumulated experience and start her own business.  She would have not been able to materialize this desire without the moral and financial support of her family. Both her mother and her husband worked abroad, and their savings were invested in a hotel, which, in the meantime, was transformed into a pension. Hence, the family hopes to be able to ensure a decent living at home. „My husband has seen the situation abroad and decided to stay home, as well as my mother, who worked for many years in Italy. This is the choice of our family – to remain at home and build our future here” states Victoria.  The entrepreneurial beginning was not an easy thing, but with the help of Dubasari Territorial Employment Department and the financial subsidy amounting MDL 81,075 (i.e., USD 4,609) provided for by the National Employment Agency (NEA) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), Victoria succeeded to develop her business and hire the needed staff. This subsidy is offered to employers with the purpose of hiring and (re) integration of people from categories needing additional support on the labour market. The Molovata Noua pension has ten employees. Angela Axentiv is one of them, she is a hotel maid. The woman is happy to have a source of income, after she lost her job in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic: “I worked at the sanatorium. Then I was dismissed, and the technological unemployment occurred". At present, the pension has ten rooms, a restaurant, a terrace, spaces for field or table tennis, a swimming pool and a landscaped space on the bank of the Dniester River. It opened its doors a month ago, but it is already accommodating an impressive number of visitors from both banks of Dniester. Victoria Musinschi mentions that, at the beginning of the way, a business requires huge investments, and the obtained subsidy helped them to reduce this burden: “We will use some of these funds to renovate the pool and to purchase the necessary equipment for the landscape. We also envisage to digitalize our hotel system and change the design". The subsidies offered by the NEA represent an active measure provided for by the Law on Employment and Unemployment Insurance, which is being tested this year with the methodological and financial support of the ILO.  Based on an Implementation Agreement, worth 122 thousand US dollars, the ILO is acting as the basic NEA partner in developing and implementing various employment policies. You can find more details about the possibility of obtaining subsidies by contacting one of the Territorial Employment Subdivisions (you can find the addresses by accessing https://www.anofm.md/ro/subdiviziuni) or by calling the Call Centre Labour Market, 08000 1000, free call from landline on the territory of the Republic of Moldova.