The Feasibility of Creating a Social Economy in Gilvánfa as Revealed by an Interview with an Expert

Abstract

The consultancy activity carried out in the framework of the “Elimination of Segregated Living Conditions in Gilvánfa” tender project covered situational awareness, diagnosis formulation, and strategic planning, related to the project element examining the feasibility of creating a social economy, meant to explore the opportunities and obstacles of the process from public employment to building a social economy. The aim of the consulting activity was to facilitate the social / solidarity economic activities of the social cooperative established in the settlement, as well as to support the employment of the target group living with multiple disadvantages in the settlement within by providing them labor market and employment counselling. As part of the consultancy activity, a semi-structured interview was conducted with one of the social workers involved in the project, who also performed labor market counselling tasks in the project.
The tasks of our interviewee, who is working as a social worker in the previously mentioned tender project currently (Spring 2020) in progress, include promoting the employment of disadvantaged, long-term unemployed Gilvánfa residents and supporting them to obtain job in the primary labor market. Prior to the social worker activities undertaken in the project, our interviewee performed  practical and methodological tasks in the field of labor market and employment at the Employment Department of the Baranya County Government Office, and also as a researcher he examined the employment and labor market conditions of the region. This activity proved to be useful and highly beneficial in his current job.
The results of the analysis of the information obtained from the interview with the above mentioned social worker are summarized below.