After a difficult period, Djalina from Hoorn is starting to shine again in the kitchen of restaurant Casa 22 in Hoorn. Through help from WerkSaam Westfriesland, people like her, who are at a distance from the labor market, have the opportunity to work again and resume their normal lives. “I hope I eventually get to where I want to be.”
A year ago, Djalina suffered from psychosis. Through guidance from the Mental Health Service and efforts by WerkSaam Westfriesland, she is gradually being prepared for normal life again. Now she works three hours a day at the Italian restaurant, cutting and washing dishes and making sauces. She enjoys that.
“It took a lot of getting used to at first, but the work is a lot of fun. There is a pleasant atmosphere and there are nice people,” she says while she picks basil leaves for a pesto sauce. An ideal job for her: “I like to do things that take a long time. Then I am in my own world.”
‘It’s very normal’
Evelien van den Bosch, owner of the restaurant, has a social pedagogical background. She didn’t hesitate for a moment to help people like Djalina find work. She employs five people from WerkSaam. “I think it’s very normal that these people have a job. And I also enjoy working with them. There are a lot of jobs that they can also do.”
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West Friesland in the lead
It is not always self-evident that people who are distanced from the labor market find work. Nationally, more than 4,500 people are waiting for a so-called ‘sheltered job’, where people with disabilities receive extra guidance in an adapted working environment.
This does not apply in the North Holland North area and the West Friesland region. “Due to the collaboration between all the different municipalities and municipal organizations, we have been able to place the most candidates with employers throughout North Holland North for years,” says Chris Reuvecamp of WerkSaam Westfriesland.
If that doesn’t work, there is always a safety net from the organization itself. “If things don’t work out on the regular labor market, we have our own training company with disciplines such as cleaning, catering and landscaping. Then we see whether they can make a step towards the regular labor market from there. In the region we have more than 300 employers who have a social attitude. As a result, we have few dropouts.”
Future detective
And it also has several advantages for those companies. Reuvecamp: “For them it is not so much about the financial aspect, but more about the social value it represents.” Van den Bosch shares that opinion. “I believe that everyone counts in society. That is a good reflection of what the world really is. And you can also see that in the workplace.”
For Djalina this is the beginning of a bright future, where she has a clear dream. “In the future I want to become a private detective or detective. I hope that through perseverance I will eventually get where I want to be.”