ΕλληνικάChoosing to dream | “Don’t lose your confidence and keep on searching’’
photo credits: Mr Fartash
This is Mr. Fartash and he is 54 years old. He comes from Iran and lives in Greece for one year now. With a very polite and friendly personality, Mr. Fartash is the person who will share with you, without any hesitation, his many outstanding life experiences. When we needed his help, in order to write this article on his work story, he was willing to spend his time productively, as he said, contributing to this activity. But this is enough from us! We will let him do the talking.
“After being a jobless person for almost a year, I now work at an equestrian center in Varympompi. My responsibilities are taking care of the horses (feeding, cleaning, saddling and training). Since I longed for a job here in Athens, I was sending my CV to every job advert I was interested in. However, there were many difficulties in the job-finding journey, with the language being the most serious one. I think that the main factor to find a satisfying job here is the Greek language. Personally speaking, I believe that I have lost job opportunities because of my lack of Greek language skills.
Before coming to Greece, I had done many different jobs. Specifically, I worked as a construction worker and as a supervisor of the construction team. I had my own business, one of metal smelting and the other one in petroleum wax production. In addition, I had been quite experienced as a horse trainer back in my country, a factor that contributed substantially to getting this job”, as he says.
“However, I couldn’t do anything without the support from the organisation Generation 2.0 RED and my participation in the career counselling program. All services were very useful for me in order to be back on my feet here in Greece. Firstly, my career counsellor wrote a new CV for me, regarding my professional and educational experience. Moreover, she gave me all the information needed about the required documents for being able to work in Greece. Additionally, she informed me on websites for job finding and, last but not least, she assisted me with the preparation for a job interview. In one word, she gave me what I needed to get hired.
My advice to other people, migrants and refugees, who are now searching for a job in Greece, would be: Don’t lose your confidence and keep on searching. You have to learn the Greek language and improve your skills. Secondly, you need to see what you can do, taking into consideration your background and in which kind of positions you would like to work. But before all the above, you should first find yourself.”
Tip: It is completely normal not being aware of everything needed to enter the job market. After all, nobody does! The only thing you can do in a situation you have unaddressed concerns is asking. Find people with relevant knowledge and the place that can provide you with guidance and take the first steps to restart!
«The project “Equality Works” is being implemented under the Active citizens fund program, by Generation 2.0 for Rights, Equality & Diversity.
The Active citizens fund in Greece is supported through a € 12m grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway as part of the EEA Grants 2014 – 2021. The program aims to develop the sustainability and capacity of the civil society sector in Greece, and to strengthen its role in promoting and safeguarding democratic procedures, active citizenship and human rights. The Fund Operator for the Active citizens fund in Greece is Bodossaki Foundation in consortium with SolidarityNow.»
For more information: www.activecitizensfund.gr
