A new service has been launched to help people in Leicestershire made jobless by the coronavirus outbreak back into work
The Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP), the Department of Work and Pensions, Leicester City Council and careers firm Futures have teamed up to launch the Covid-19 Redundancy and Recruitment Service.
The service aims to match people who are facing redundancy with opportunities in sectors that have seen a surge in employment demand.
The Government is already offering the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which is designed to help businesses retain staff during the outbreak by paying 80% of an employee’s salary while they are furloughed.
However, redundancies are still being made. But at the same time, demand for staff is increasing in sectors vital to the fight against the virus outbreak, such as food production, retail, logistics and healthcare.
The new service will work with local employers in these sectors to help those facing redundancy make a smooth transition into new work.
Fiona Baker, head of strategy at LLEP, said: “Traditionally, responses to redundancy situations have been coordinated directly by the DWP. “However, it is currently experiencing huge demand and is diverting its staffing resources to claims processing and payments.
“In response, we will work with partners at Leicester City Council’s Employment Hub and Futures to provide this new, rapid response triage service.
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“It will match redundancy situations to employment opportunities and provide additional support where required.
“The fight against coronavirus is an immense team effort and I am proud that we are able to pool our expertise to help those worse affected by the economic impact of this outbreak across our region.”
Mayor of Leicester, Peter Soulsby said: “It is important that support is available for those people who may be facing redundancy as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
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“I am pleased that the city council has been able to work so rapidly with our partners to set up this new service.
“It will help people back into employment and address the growing demand for staff in areas of work that are vital to our response in these challenging times.
“This is another example of how Leicester is pulling together to get through the coronavirus crisis by keeping essential services running and ensuring that people get the support that they need.”