Dutch govt. not doing enough to help refugees find work: Social Council

The Dutch government is doing too little to help refugees find work, according to the social economic council SER in a report released on Friday, ANP reports.

The SER is an advisory body of employers, trade unions and independent experts.

Refugees who were granted asylum in the Netherlands since 2013 have to pay for their integration course themselves. According to the SER, this is a big problem. Only 10 percent of people who received refugee status last year found a job relatively quickly, according to figures from the municipalities. The rest have to live on welfare.

The SER thinks that municipalities have to play a bigger role in integration. The council also calls on the government to make it easier for refugees to study or get training without losing their welfare benefits. And the government should look into making policy of small successful initiatives, like the one in which refugees still in asylum centers are moved to regions where work is available in their field of expertise.

Finally the SER calls on employers to do more targeted recruiting among refugees.