(ANS - Madrid) – In recent months the Pinardi Federation of Salesian Social Platforms, in collaboration with the JP Morgan Chase Foundation, has launched a programme on the First Professional Experience. It has managed, in the first year of the project, to improve the level of employability of ninety-seven young people and provide employment for seventy-one of them. The results were presented on Monday 21 September.

73% of participants in the First Professional Experience Programme obtained a job in the first year of the project. They are seventy-one young people in vulnerable situations, who made their entry into the labour market.

Ninety-seven young people took place in the collaborative project as well as the associated companies that accepted the young people in their businesses for periods of two to four months. Accompanied by a professional tutor who guided and motivated their professional advancement, each young person received specialized training within the company. Among the companies involved are some of the most important companies in the hotel, catering and tourism industry: Meliá Hotels International, Hilton Madrid Airport, Grupo Vips, Parques Reunidos, KFC and Accenture Foundation.

The review of the first year of the programme was presented on 21 September at the American Space, in collaboration with the Embassy of the United States of America.  Javier Llorente, President of the Pinardi Foundation, noted that the programme has proved to be an effective way to end youth unemployment. He said that Pinardi "counts on the most vulnerable people in society, with a working model in which the person is at the centre of all activities."

Pedro Boada, Managing Director of JP Morgan in Spain, also spoke. He underlined how "these results demonstrate that the collaboration between companies and social organizations is the way to ensure that these young people have a better present and a better future. It will also result in better growth prospects for Spain. These are objectives to which the JP Morgan Chase Foundation is committed."

The US Embassy was represented by Matt Boland, Deputy Officer for Culture. He drew attention to the cooperation offered by the embassy through various initiatives, such as the "master class" held by chef Byron Hogan.

The results of the review are available on the site salesianos.es; as well as a video with images and testimonies of the young beneficiaries of the project.

Published 24/09/2015