State Councilor Hattmannsdorfer visits the ÖIF career platform on nursing and health professions in the state of Upper Austria’s geriatric care school / ÖIF integration service supports skilled workers
Vienna (OTS) – On Thursday, March 21, 2024, a career platform organized by the Austrian Integration Fund (ÖIF) with a focus on health and nursing professions took place in cooperation with the Upper Austria State Care School for the Elderly in Linz. As part of the event, over 200 refugees and displaced persons from ÖIF German courses had the opportunity to find out about vacancies as well as training and employment opportunities at the hospitals of the General Accident Insurance Institute (AUVA), the Red Cross, Caritas, the Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic, the Linz Senior Center, Mobile Care Upper Austria and the Linz Senior Center. The participants were able to have direct conversations with recruiters on site, apply for open positions or arrange an interview in the company, and obtain information about employment opportunities in the nursing and health sector. The ÖIF also supported participants in the application process with CV checks. According to the nursing staff demand forecast by Health Austria (GÖG), there will be a shortage of around 200,000 nursing and care staff in Austria by 2050. Given the high demand for skilled workers in Austria, the focus of the event is on the possibility of a quick entry into nursing and health professions; further career platforms focusing on nursing are planned throughout Austria in the near future.
Dr. Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer, State Councilor for Integration: “Anyone who comes to us and wants to achieve something should have every opportunity with us. The ÖIF’s first career platform with a focus on nursing in Upper Austria offers a great opportunity for this: migrants and people displaced from Ukraine can get an idea of our social organizations directly on site, and ideally they can also find a professional “match” for the social sector. In Upper Austria we offer the best opportunities for this with diverse and flexible training options that also make it possible to learn German at the same time. Because German is the key to our society and work is a driver of integration.”
Tamara Hildner, head of the career opportunities team at the ÖIF: “There is a high demand for skilled workers in the nursing and health sector throughout Austria. As part of career platforms, the ÖIF brings together care facilities in need of workers with immigrants who are interested in working in the care and health sector. I am pleased that after the first information events in Vienna and Graz, immigrants in Linz now also have the opportunity to easily find out about career opportunities in the nursing sector.”
Wilhelmine Steinbacher-Mittermeir, director of the senior care school for the state of Upper Austria: “Working with the elderly needs trainees: The career platform should address those wanting to train directly and convince them of a career opportunity in working with the elderly.”
Dr. Aichinger Walter, President of the Upper Austrian Red Cross: “The career opportunities in nursing and care at the Upper Austrian Red Cross are broad and diverse. Since we look after asylum seekers, it is particularly important to us to make these people aware of the career opportunities within the Red Cross. Our employees appreciate the variety, working in teams, the experience gained and the great flexibility that the job entails. We are pleased that many people got information from us and that we were able to offer them a meaningful, crisis-proof professional activity and hopefully have inspired them to do so.”
Katharina Koegler, Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic: “The Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic offers potential employees with refugee and migration experiences the appropriate framework conditions and perspectives to enter, develop and qualify in the field of nursing. For this reason, we are pleased to be part of the ÖIF career platform and to exchange ideas directly with interested parties about their job and career opportunities in nursing professions.”
The job-specific online course “Learn German for Nursing” supports nursing staff born abroad in learning German
The ÖIF employees also informed the participants of the career platform about part-time German courses, job-specific German learning offers and the new online specialist language course “Learn German for Nursing”. The free online course is aimed at people who are interested in professions such as nursing assistants, nursing assistants, specialist social care, but also home help or 24-hour care, are in nursing training or are already pursuing a nursing profession. The course contains over 1,000 exercises with practical situations from everyday working life and can be completed at any time or location. People who are unable to attend a local German course due to their working hours or shift work also have access to a range of daily online courses and over 5,000 exercises for self-learning on the free learning platform ÖIF-Sprachportal. The ÖIF’s freely accessible online German learning offering attracted around 100,000 participants last year.
New funding for people in the nostrification process for health and care professions
Given the high demand for skilled workers, the ÖIF integration service for skilled workers has expanded funding opportunities for the recognition of foreign degrees and qualifications in the health and care sector so that they can be used in Austria as quickly as possible. Tuition fees from an Austrian university or an Austrian university of applied sciences will be reimbursed for immigrants in professions on the nationwide list of skilled workers shortages, such as doctors, health and nursing staff or midwives. Costs for issuing notices of recognition, assessments and translation costs for documents and certificates are also eligible for reimbursement.
About the ÖIF integration service for skilled workers
The ÖIF integration service for skilled workers began operations in autumn 2023 and offers integration services for skilled workers, their relatives and companies. As a contact point for specialists, the office offers information, advice and events on pre-integration as well as on living and working in Austria and on ÖIF German learning offers. Reference is also made to existing regional and national offers throughout Austria. For companies, the integration service offers, among other things, further training with experts and German learning opportunities to support foreign skilled workers in their integration. Given the high demand for skilled workers and skilled workers in Austria, the Integration Service for Skilled Workers has been supporting German courses directly in companies in sectors with a high demand for skilled workers since 2024. More information at www.integrationsservice.at
Questions & Contact:
Austrian Integration Fund
+43 17 10 12 03 375
presse@integrationsfonds.at
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