Special Edition Marking the Completion of the Interreg
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HE A LT H Y SPECIAL EDITION MARKING THE COMPLETION OF THE INTERREG NSR 5B PROJECT IN FOR CARE 2016 – 2019 HEALTHY IN DRENTHE • FOREWORD • GIVE CAREGIVERS SOME ROOM - ALSO IN THEIR WORK ENVIRONMENT Give caregivers some room - also in their work environment The 2018 edition of the Healthy in in this way in step with market developments, organisations Drenthe magazine highlighted vari- can guarantee continuity and thus remain future-proof in ous projects dealing with happy and terms of employment in our region. healthy ageing in our province. One of these projects was the internation- This magazine provides an insight into the final phase of all al cooperation project In For Care. the pilots implemented in Drenthe during the course of In In For Care is a project within the For Care. We hope this provides you with a clear overview Interreg North Sea Programme in of all the valuable activities that have been designed and which ten partner regions from six expanded in relation to the theme of caregiving and informal countries work together, exchanging care. knowledge and experience. Drenthe is proud to be part of this collaboration. I wish you an inspiring read! The project in Drenthe is focussed, among other things, on Henk Brink the sustainable employability of those who combine work Member of the Executive Board for the Province of Drenthe with informal care-giving tasks. The Province of Drenthe has (Economy) developed policy for all SMEs in the region to increase flexi- bility regarding inset for this group. In Drenthe we are involved in such projects because we be- lieve it’s important that our employees are able to actively and healthily work till a pensionable age. Personnel can grow Scene from In For Care video 3 HEALTHY IN DRENTHE • THE VPB EMMEN EMPLOYERS’ ASSOCIATION: DEFENDING THE COMBINATION OF WORK AND INFORMAL CARE FOR OVER TEN YEARS ‘ Attention to informal care. Just do it! Our motto is ‘leap before you look’ for a reason.’ Scene from In For Care video The website completes the VPB campaign, titled Duurzame inzetbaarheid; zó doen we dat in Drenthe (‘Sustainable em- ployment, that’s how it’s done in Drenthe’). The launch took place at the VPB’s headquarters, in the presence of several employers and an international delegation of the In For Care Interreg project. The Province of Drenthe is a partner in this project which runs until the end of 2019. In September Dren- the hosted a conference for participants from the various North Sea countries. Attention to informal care In 2010, Vereniging Parkmanagement VPB Director Herman Idema and project coordinator Arda Bedrijventerreinen (Employers’ association) van Dam gave the launch presentation. What was the re- VPB Emmen was the first Dutch sectoral sponse to the website? Arda van Dam: ‘Very positive. In the The VPB Emmen employers’ association: organisation to table the issue of working run-up to the launch, we conferred with many employers, who caregivers with companies. An issue that already make an effort when it comes to combining work and continues to be a hot item for the VPB informal care. The website targets companies that don’t pay a defending the combination today. In September, the VPB launched its lot of attention to informal care just yet, or that are reluctant online helpdesk www.mantelzorginfopunt. to do this.’ nl (informal care information point). Here of work and informal care for employers can quickly and easily find Herman Idema: ‘The message is very simple: Attention to information about the various challenges informal care. Just do it! There’s no need for endless discus- over ten years encountered by employers who want to sions, it’s not rocket science. Our motto is ‘Leap before you facilitate their caregiving employees. look’ for a reason. Herman Idema, Director of VPB Emmen 5 GEZOND IN DRENTHE • NAAM ARTIKEL Arda van Dam launches the www.mantelzorginfopunt.nl website The main thing, and research has proven this, is that a com- aimed at employees, which can be found at www.mantelzorg- ‘ Approximately one out every pany’s management should take an interest in their employ- power.nl . It already has a good audience and will soon be three employees at Dokter is ees’ lives: a good corporate culture. In Drenthe, naoberschap developed in more detail. (‘good neighbourliness’) is a thing. It is interesting that the a caregiver. We like to provi- personal approach is almost taken for granted in many family Herman Idema: ‘Attention to caregivers who work, and sus- de the time and space for this. businesses. Companies with a policy that focuses on informal tainable employment on the whole, takes time. This is all part care are also better performers: their employee satisfaction of being a good employer. It means not just focussing on the Because it pays off.’ and labour productivity increases, while absenteeism figures company’s financial bottom line, but also and especially the drop. And don’t underestimate how important this is for their social impact of your company. We sometimes call this the image: these companies generally attract new employees Rhineland model, which stands for sustainable growth, while more easily.’ taking the interests of all the stakeholders into account. The Dokter Cleaning company opposite of this is the short-term Anglo-Saxon model, which Rhineland model focuses on just one thing: maximising your profit. But there’s still a lot of ground to cover, which is why this reconciles work and informal care website was launched. Arda van Dam: ‘True, which is why we are working on several levels. Another aspect of our campaign The VPB represents almost 300 companies in the region In 2012, the employers’ association VPB (Vereniging Parkmanagement Bedrijven) Emmen was Buzz on Tour: we visited several towns in the province around Emmen, a workforce of 18,000 FTEs. The notions of called on companies to participate in a pilot project aiming to find ways to facilitate the with an old American school bus, meeting up with employ- sustainability and safety are central to every activity that the combination of work and informal care. There was almost no response. Which is why Jelle ers and local politicians. Since then, several employers have VPB organises for its members. Dokter, who served as a board member with the VPB at the time, decided to enlist his own changed tack. We will definitely pursue this. We also con- company, Dokter Schoonmaakorganisatie (Dokter Cleaning Company). At Dokter, they have tributed to the development of the M-Power tool, a website always believed in giving employees the space to support others, alongside their work. 6 7 HEALTHY IN DRENTHE • DOKTER CLEANING COMPANY RECONCILES WORK AND INFORMAL CARE and obviously we want to retain them. talk to each other, which is why we try De Groot Installatie Groep: At Dokter, our basic philosophy is to to limit digital contact if possible. The watch out for each other. In Drenthe, object supervisors, a group of 15-20 this is known as naoberschap, or good employees, regularly visit people on an informal care policy neighbourliness. This is the prevailing the job. While this takes time and costs culture in family businesses, where money, the return on our investment should be part of your DNA people know each other and know is mutual trust. Our company culture what they can expect from one anoth- is such that employees are not afraid er. There is mutual trust and as long as to articulate their desire or need take you’re doing your job, there is a lot of on caregiving tasks. The object super- margin for discussion. visor coordinates with the customer. Dokter Schoonmaakorganisatie started In most cases we manage to reconcile out in 1966 with two employees. The We mainly employ women, these are the needs of all parties. If this proves company’s headquarters are in Em- generally more inclined to take on in- impossible, we find another project for men, but it has operations throughout formal care duties. Approximately one this employee. the North Netherlands, and a work- out of every three employees at Dokter force of approximately 800 employees. is a caregiver (the national average is Our object supervisors also look at The majority of the employees are one in four). Our largest group of em- the sustainable employability of our women, who work part-time. In the ployees is the 45-55 age category. Many employees: who is the best match for early nineties, Dokter Schoonmaakor- of them have been with us for 12 to 15 a particular job? Say, someone has a ganisatie became a limited company, years. In 2012, we were the first com- known back problem, for whatever rea- and Jelle took over the helm from pany in the region to sign the Informal son. Then mopping floors will make it his father. Since then, Gert and Inge, Care Protocol, whereby companies worse. There are plenty of other clean- Jelle’s children, have also joined the commit to developing a policy that ing jobs that can be done instead. company. facilitates informal care. Our approach has paid off. The Social return Sustainable employability work-related absenteeism figures are Harald Vos, Head of Administration We have taken many steps since then. very low at Dokter, and we have a lot of and HRM (Human Resource Man- Our employees in the field are guided hard-working, loyal employees. People De Groot Installatie Groep was established in 1965. The company has a workforce of 700 agement) at Dokter, has also been by ‘object supervisors’. They are the enjoy working for us - they stay a long employees, with several branches around the Netherlands.