​“I can work and learn quickly, I am a person you can rely on,“, – says Elizabeth, who is a little over 55 years old and is from Vaslui. Elisabeta is part of more than 45,000 unemployed between the ages of 55 and 64, which is approximately 17% of the total number of unemployed in Romania, who represent a vulnerable category of Romanian society. This is what emerges from the Invisibles study, launched by Provident as part of a larger effort to support vulnerable groups in Romania.

In fact, we are talking about a category of people who can still offer a lot to society, but are in a situation where they no longer have enough opportunities to do so. “I accept each day as it is, because I am stronger than myself.” I never get angry or upset. I’m trying to find a way to solve what I need to solve– says Elizabeth. After working for 18 years as her mother’s assistant, she had to leave the country in search of work in another part of the world.

Elizabeth became pregnant at the age of 47 in England. Her life was turned upside down, she did not expect to have more children and did not think that this could happen to her again. She gave birth to a girl, but a year and a half later her partner died and she was left alone, so she had to return to Romania. “I had big problems with my ex-husband, she says. I had to leave the country, it was impossible. So I ended up in England, where I found a job in a hotel. I also met a good man with whom I had a wonderful relationship. Life was good, I had peace, but… my husband died, and I was left alone with a small child.”

Little Ana is not the only child of Elizaveta. Since doctors told her 30 years ago that she could not have children, she decided to adopt a child. He adopted and raised Rada, who now lives in his home. But when Radu was 7 years old, the diagnosis of Elizabeth’s infertility was refuted. She became pregnant, although she theoretically knew that this could not happen to her. She gave birth to Mihai after a difficult pregnancy, suffering for hours on the delivery table, almost dying. But he also wanted it so bad it didn’t matter. “I could die, I didn’t care– says Elizabeth. I wanted him more than you can imagine.”

Age makes it difficult to find a job, especially for women

“Since I returned to Romania, I can no longer find a job, – Elizaveta tells us. Mihai, who, while I was out of the country, stayed with her ex-husband, is studying at a sports school, she needs money, this girl went to school, and I am a year old, how can I cope? I do what I can!”

Like many other women of her age, Elizabeth cannot find work. The data show that there are significant gender differences, with employment rates for women significantly lower than for men. The study shows that age makes it more difficult for women (63%) to find a job than for men (37%)Invisible.

People over 55 who have lost their jobs and been forced out of work are told they are outdated and do not have the right skills or abilities for today’s work. Only 27% of them choose professional conversion as a way out, the rest rely on state subsidies. At the same time, there is a reluctance of some employers to attract people over a certain age to their companies. This kind of discrimination manifests itself quite subtly in interaction with employers. They are usually not told outright that they cannot be hired, but are sometimes asked their age during phone calls.

Elizabeth applied for a gas station in the city, a bakery and a store. He did not receive an answer. “I am ready to learn everything, I steal work immediately! I took a school mediator course, got a 9.75, took an accounting course, graduated with a 9.50… but I couldn’t find a job because even those with a college degree can’t find a job here, let alone about me”.

Most of all, he liked to work at the currency exchange office. “As much as I liked it, I studied with love… but when I stayed there, the point closed and I had nothing left to do. But I loved mathematics and understood everything that needed to be done! Now I’m attending tailoring courses, maybe I’ll be lucky this time.” says Elizabeth.

Elizabeth often turns to luck, saying that she feels invisible to society and that only God knows what will happen to her next. “If it were not for faith, she saysI don’t know what I would do.” He doesn’t know what kind of pension he will have, as 50% of Romanians over 55 don’t know, and he doesn’t even care. “Do I know, will I understand? I didn’t even think about retirement.

And although 6 out of 10 Romanians rate themselves negatively in terms of their importance to society, Elisabeta says that if she was given the opportunity to work and show what she can do, she would prove that she is a citizen. importantly.

Like her, there are many other people who are determined to do something and who need a more inclusive approach from all social actors. According to the research, solutions exist for these categories of vulnerable Romanians, to which Elizabeth also belongs, but systemic changes are needed. More than funding, what is lacking is long-term vision and adequate capacity in the social sector. The invisible have the right to live in a better world, as Elizabeth says: “How can I not feel important? What, I’m not human? Who knows how much money I have in my pocket? It’s true that I don’t have much, but I would really like to be able to earn more myself and be better.”

For the involuntarily unemployed, like Elizabeth, and for other “invisibles” (single-parent families, retirees on the verge of poverty, subsistence farmers, small business owners or manual laborers), Provident has developed the “Invisible” program, through which it wants to lend help in solving the problems of these people who are not noticed by society. On the platform associated with the program, people have the opportunity to find useful information and resources from government sources or provided by non-governmental organizations that deal with each vulnerable category. The resources are useful both for those who are in invisible categories, and for those who can thus learn how to help them, understand them, in a word, how to carefully and empathize with these people.

Article supported by Provident Association for Education