Carillion signs up to Prime Ministerís campaign to help long-term unemployed

Support services and construction company Carillion has signed up to the Local Employment Partnership - a scheme to help long-term unemployed people back in to work, in response to an invitation from the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.

Carillion has committed to supporting the Local Employment Partnership ñ an initiative with Jobcentre Plus ñ to tackle unemployment and social exclusion. The Partnership programme is an integral part of the Governmentís Welfare Reform Green Paper announced by Secretary of State for Works and Pensions Peter Hain today.

Carillion is the first in its sector to take part in the scheme and joins other major companies including, Asda, B&Q, Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury and Tesco.

In a reception at Number 10 Downing Street this morning (Wednesday), attended by Carillion human resources director Susan Morton, Gordon Brown spoke about the vital role employers have to play in getting the most disadvantaged people into work.

He said: ìAll of us here know that in a world in which we will be competing based on our talent and ideas, the source of our strength is in people and their skills.

ìMore so than ever before it is your employees who will be the creators of your intellectual capital, productivity and competitiveness. And we have to work together to invest in that ñ recruiting from the widest possible pool of talent and equipping people with the skills both they and our economy need.î

Carillion will demonstrate its commitment to the Local Employment Partnership through a number of measures, including:

- offering work trials to local benefit claimants
- working with Jobcentre Plus and the Learning Skills Council on pre-employment training to make sure it is relevant to employersí needs and guarantee interviews or jobs to those who complete the training
- Encourage existing employees to volunteer to provide one-to-one mentoring for long-term benefit claimants to help prepare them for work
- Reviewing application processes

Carillion chief executive John McDonough said: ìWe are delighted to be working in partnership with Jobcentre Plus to change peopleís lives by helping them into meaningful jobs. Our ability to recruit, develop and retain excellent people is by being an employer of choice is vital to the success of our business. Signing up to the Local Employment Partnership will also help us achieve this and build a more sustainable business that has positive impacts on the communities in which we operate by helping more people back into work.î

Carillion is holding a special event with Jobcentre Plus tomorrow, Thursday 19 July, to mark the start of their partnership, to create awareness and to develop plans for joint working.