Online job-platform used by more than 10,000 jobseekers with disabilities

Engelsizkariyer.com is the first Turkish career portal for people with disabilities. Jobseekers can obtain free membership and apply for free trainings(via e-learning). The organization also offers services to companies and has created a reference book on communication with Disabled for HR personnel and community.

Engelsizkariyer.com – a Turkish non-profit enterprise – runs Turkey’s first career and human resources portal for people with disabilities, bringing together people with disabilities looking for a job and employers looking for employees with disabilities. In 2016, the organization listed more than 10,000 CVs on its website.

Problems Targeted

In Turkey, the minimum requirement for employing disabled people in the public sector is 4 per cent of the workforce and in the private sector 3 per cent. However, lack of sufficient information about the needs of people with disabilities, prejudice, and an indifferent attitude by potential employers remain the main barriers to successful employment.

Solution, Innovation and Impact

Engelsizkariyer.com offers awareness-raising courses and counselling to companies, and gives out “awareness awards” to companies that employ people with disabilities in suitable positions. Furthermore, it proposes vocational and personal training courses for people with disabilities who are not working and/or have no professional qualifications. All people with disabilities can obtain free membership and can apply for jobs through the company website, can get free training (via e learning), or can apply for free courses such as CV writing. The organization has also published a book titled ''360 Degree Communication with the Disabled,'' which serves as a reference guide for HR personnel and community.

Funding, Outlook and Transferability

Total project costs are US$45,000–65,000 per year, covering the personnel cost of three employees and various running expenses; 75 per cent of the cost is covered by the state, 25 per cent comes 
 from a “usage fee” paid by private companies for the services offered. Since its founding in 2005, Engelsizkariyer.com has a grown significantly in the number of users of its website and participants in the courses offered. The organization estimates that several hundred jobs have been created through their activities.