Inclusive Future

Project lead
Prof. Dr. Silvia Keller

Project participants
Prof. Dr. Bettina Siecke

Duration
December 2022 bis May 2024

This research project is being carried out by the Research Institute of Vocational Education and Training f-bb.

The BA has formulated a vision in its Strategy 2025 with four external and internal fields of action respectively. The field of "Arbeits- und Fachkräftesicherung" (securing of labour and skilled workers) is the BA's contribution to the structure of Germany's training and labour market. The BA as an organisation has also found a way into the future in other areas. Parent projects can be found in the BA's Executive Board's work programme. One goal is enhancing counselling. The BA offers counselling for employers according to § 29 para. 1 SGB III. As part of the overall goal, there is an intention to expand what is offered in terms of counselling for companies. The inclusion of an assistance in participation for people with disabilities is just as much a focus of the forward-looking business orientation. Here the BA sees the importance of supporting and counselling those involved in the labour market, like companies. Maintaining the employability of people with and without disabilities, for example as part of the Qualification and Participation Opportunities Act promotes the securing of labour and skilled workers in Germany. This is where the BA as a counselling service provider can support the active people involved in the primary labour market - especially employers.

The two-year research project "Zukunft_Inklusiv" (Inclusive Future) intends to examine what the role of the National Employment Agency (BA) in the design of inclusive approaches in companies could look like and what recommendations for action can be drawn. The investigation revolves around the expansion of job opportunities for people with disabilities (disabled and considered equivalent) on the labour market.

The following central research questions are to be answered:

1. How can the percentage of people with a recognised disability working in a company be increased?
2. What inclusive elements can be designed (incentives and opportunities) to increase inclusion in companies?
3. What National Employment Agency counselling and services are especially suitable for supporting companies in the design of a sustainable structure in an inclusive working world? Are there existing approaches that lead to new counselling and service ideas?
4. How can the National Employment Agency network with cooperation partners so as to support companies in sustainable concepts in an inclusive working world?

The aim of the investigation is to find out how the employment rate can be increased in companies and what approaches and strategies are suitable to motivate companies which do not employ people with disabilities to do so. The investigation should concentrate on the integration of specialists and junior staff. The object of the research also focuses on the services provided by the National Employment Agency which are there to support companies in their inclusion of people with disabilties.

The qualitative research method is to be applied in the design of the research. There are three components in the planning of the investigation. Research component 1 includes literary and source research through the contracting authority as well as the analysis. Research component 2 comprises the creation of a survey tool for the individualinterviews, the carrying out of the surveys, the evaluation of the results and their documentation. Research component 3 is designed as an expert dialogue in workshops that accompany the research project in pre-arranged intervals. The three research components are split over six working packages.

Using part-standardised interviewguidelines, 24 companies (12 inclusion award winners, and 12 with a lower employment rate) will be asked. The interviews should not normally take longer than an hour each. To reflect on the results and go into more depth, two expert dialogues will take place as face-to-faceworkshops each of four hours (work packages 2 and 5) at the HdBA Mannheim or in Nürnberg. The contracting authority develop the interviewguidelines for the individualinterviews as well as the workshopconcept for expert dialogues, agreeing everything with the client before carrying out the interviews and/or workshops . The client acquires the companies and experts with the help of given databases and contacts from the employer services for the workshops, which are agreed upon with the contracting authority, checked and selected. In preparation for the expert dialogues 1 and 2, the contracting authority and the client meet (for 2 hours) to agree on details.

Data evaluation of the individualinterviews (N=24) is done using the qualitatively structured content analysis according to Mayring and the analysis programme MaxQDA. In addition, the client receives a potentially written record of the interview from the contracting authority.