Alderman Peter van der Wardt of the Municipality of Oude IJsselstreek presented the ‘Unieke Achterhoekers aan het werk’ plaque to Kramp in Varsseveld, the Netherlands, on 4 February 2019. This initiative focuses on people living in the Achterhoek region in the eastern part of the Netherlands who need help finding employment. Kramp, an NPM Capital portfolio company, is one of the companies that gives people who have an occupational disability or a labour market disadvantage a chance of gaining a job or work experience placement.
Kramp Netherlands has been focussing on inclusive enterprise for many years. The company succeeds in integrating these employees into their business operations and can often offer them long-term employment opportunities. A unique collaboration has been brought about through ‘Unieke Achterhoekers aan het werk’.
Jan Frans Berends, Logistics Director at Kramp, believes it is very important to follow a meticulous and professional approach. “Proper selection and targeted coaching are key to an effective structural working method. This produces real results. It’s great to see that it’s so successful in practice.”
60 jobs and 7,000,000 return crates
In just five years’ time, more than 60 of these job-seekers have found a job at Kramp in five years’ time and 7 million return crates have been processed. The red crates are cleaned, repaired and relabeled. These employees are also deployed for the cleaning crew. “All of them are extremely motivated and very hard workers. There are also possibilities for them to move up within our company,” says Logistics Manager Frank Dijkstra.
Sustainability target and offering employment
“We’re proud that at Kramp we are fulfilling our sustainability target and, perhaps even more importantly, that we’re offering employment to people who have a labour market disadvantage so that they can once again feel that they are part of society. And it’s important to note that working with these employees doesn’t mean that there are fewer opportunities for achieving the targeted returns,” says Dijkstra. Alderman Peter van de Wardt: “Kramp is my kind of company. Their underlying motivation deserves to be commended and followed by other companies.”
The employer service point Werkgeversservicepunt Achterhoek (WSP Achterhoek) is the central point of contact for employers in the region who wish to hire employees with a labour market disadvantage or would like advice on subsidies and information about the regional labour market. This service point is an alliance of UWV, Laborijn, Sociale Dienst Oost Achterhoek (SDOA, formerly Hameland) and a number of municipalities. Changes to the law mean people on benefits have also been added to the target group of the Participation Act. Randstad Participation serves as a social partner of WSP Achterhoek in order to explore the possibilities for these employees at Kramp. The collaboration among different stakeholders ensures that many matters are taken care of for Kramp and that the placement of people from the target group runs smoothly.
Read the Kramp profile
