In Södertälje the Introduction unit at the Work Life Office is responsible for helping those with residence permits find jobs, continue studying or start a business as soon as possible.
Many refugees come to Södertälje because they have relatives already living here. But because the stream of refugees is often very large, there are often long queues and waiting periods for a job or housing. Södertälje Municipality collaborates with other municipalities in Sweden where there are better housing and employment possibilities. Talk to your handling officer if you are interested in moving. Asylum seekers can always turn to the Swedish Migration Board's office in Solna.
Starting points
Everybody has visions, plans, hopes and expectations for their own and their family's future.
What we want to know is: Where are you heading? What are your goals? How quickly do you want to achieve them? How much effort are you prepared to put into achieving them?
As we know the roads that lead to where you want to go and the available resources that will help get you there, it is our task to point you in the right direction and show you what your options are.
We can help you choose a profession or job, embark on academic or language studies, move to another town or achieve a good living standard in general - but you have to make your own choices and take an active part in your introduction programme.
We believe that the sooner you find employment or start studying, the better. Your finances, for instance, will improve considerably once you get a job.
Everybody has goals but you have to take the responsibility for achieving yours.
Our tools
To begin with, we will ask you what you want to do with your life. Then we will ask you what previous skills you have; this could include language skills, professional expertise, academic qualifications or previous work experience which may be useful.
We will then put together an individual, multi-step introduction plan which includes:
- Swedish language studies: SFI (Swedish for Immigrants) or SFA (Swedish for Academics) depending on your previous studies and language skills
- A course on Swedish society, rules, culture, laws and conventions. Tuition is in your language or via an interpreter.
- A course on the Swedish labour market and the rules, routines and conventions that apply.
- A trainee position where you can meet other colleagues, practice your Swedish language skills and forge contacts for finding a job.
- If you want to move to another municipality in Sweden, we can help you. It may be easier to find a job in another town or maybe you want to study in another part of Sweden.
The introduction course is 40 hours a week and takes about 1½ years to complete. If you are ambitious and manage to find a job sooner, however, we will give you more help in completing your studies and trainee programme.
Our aim
Our aim is to help you find a job or start studying as quickly as possible. This will give you a good start to fulfilling your ambitions.
Our solutions are individually designed to make everyone's introductory period as short as possible.
We provide flexible solutions for language studies and trainee work that are geared to your level of ambition and your abilities. You should be prepared to study in your own time, and perhaps more intensively than you may be used to.
When you have completed your introductory programme, we hope you will feel that we treated you with respect, that we made the best possible use of your skills, that we understood what your goals were and that our methods helped you achieve them.
Our rules
The introduction period is a maximum of 1.5 years, but can also be shorter depending on your level of ambition.
The programme is 40 hours a week but can be longer depending on your level of ambition.
During the introductory period you will receive an introductory salary which will be reduced by periods of sick leave or absenteeism in the same way that most salaried jobs in Sweden are. The introductory salary is low so for the sake of your finances it is advisable to find employment as soon as you can.
Our introductory programme makes demands on the participants but we also make demands on our professional ability to make your introductory period as short but effective as possible and to provide you with sustainable and long-term solutions.
