The majority of workers shed from two textile factories in 2007 are in new jobs after benefiting from an EU-funded scheme coordinated by the Employment and Training Corporation.
Two years ago, when 675 employees of VF Corporation and Bortex lost their job, the island had applied for help under the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGAF). It was granted almost €700,000 for a scheme to help the workers acquire new skills and reintegrate in the employment market.
Of the 675 employees, 427 (63.5 per cent) are gainfully occupied and only eight per cent are still registering for work. The rest, 192 workers, are classified by the ETC as "inactive", according to information supplied to The Times.
An ETC spokesman clarified that "inactive" meant these former employees "are still searching for work but are not registering as unemployed".
However, sources said that although this could be the case, it was also possible that these so-called "inactive workers" were actually working but not declaring their employment for tax purposes, among other reasons.
An official from the European Commission, which monitors the funds granted under the EGAF, said that from the first reports it seemed the EU funds invested in this project had the desired effect.
"The Commission is very satisfied with the results obtained through the ETC tailor-made scheme for the redundant workers, so much so that the majority are happily re-employed and fully participating in the job market," he said.
The EGAF was turning out to be one of the most important EU tools to boost the employment sector among member states, particularly through the recession challenge that Europe was facing, the official said.
The ETC programme provided the workers laid-off from VF and Bortex with new skills and job opportunities. Some even set up their own business and received an initial grant from the ETC of €5,800 to cover the start-up costs.
Employers were also given incentives to employ one or more of the redundant workers through a financial grant amounting to half the minimum wage for the first 17 weeks. This amounted to a grant of €5,116 for every worker.
Meanwhile, those who did not find immediate alternative employment were given a job search grant for the first six months, over and above the usual unemployment benefits. This grant of €1,817 helped redundant workers cope with day-to-day expenses and the initial shock that accompanied the sudden lay-off.
The EGAF can fund active labour market measures focused entirely on helping workers made redundant as a result of globalisation. It does not fund passive social protection measures such as retirement pensions or unemployment benefits, which are the competence of the member states.