Labour Directorate Seeking Jobs For Refugees

The Directorate of Labour is now actively seeking out employment opportunities for the refugees who will soon come to Iceland.

RÚV reports that the Directorate has sent out the call to employers in the capital region and the greater Eyjafjörður area (where Akureyri is located).

“I think that what needs to be done is we need to interview [the refugees] and assess both skill sets and education levels,” Directorate director Gissur Pétursson told reporters. “Try to find jobs that are keeping with those things. In this way, people will of course be most satisfied and get the most out of their jobs,” while adding that not everyone is going to find a job perfectly fitting with their education and skills.

To this end, the Directorate hopes to talk to many different employers so that there can be work ready for refugees coming to Iceland, the first group of which are expected next month.

According to data from Statistics Iceland, unemployment is currently at 3.8%. This marks a new low level of joblessness for the past year, and appears to be falling as the number of available jobs have increased.