'Don't see Social Returnnas an obligation, but as an opportunity'

Ampliar is all about making Social Impact. The organization has been specializing in the field of Social Return for more than 27 years and maintains a unique philosophy. What it comes down to is that they know how to motivate people with a distance to the labor market in a very accessible way for a job in construction and infrastructure, and to work on their personal growth in parallel.

Regional Manager Kevin McWhorter (Northeast Netherlands) explains how Ampliar uses Social Return as a lever for personal and social growth. "Think of someone who is on unemployment benefit for more than three months, with a slight work disability or someone who has been declared partially disabled. Even a 'new Dutchman' who has just finished his integration and needs to build up a resume is eligible for Social Return. As do people who have had little or no education."

Local presence

Clients such as the Department of Public Works, provinces and municipalities include Social Return as a performance requirement or as an (effort) obligation in the contract. "The idea behind this is that at a certain level local people with a distance to the labor market contribute to a project. Typically, it's a fixed percentage of the wage or contract sum of a project," McWhorter says. "Because this matter is not core business for many contractors and some experience in this area is nevertheless a requirement, we are often called in to provide support with the Social Return task. If desired, we can help in the tender phase to increase the chances of being awarded the contract. We know the government, the UWV and the municipalities. We know the roads within the social domain and also feel very much at home on a construction site. Moreover, we are active throughout the Netherlands and have a local presence. This means not only that we have an up-to-date view of local regulations regarding Social Return, but also that we recruit the right people locally."

Schooling/Training

Individuals who qualify for Social Return sometimes have a lower level of education, McWhorter states. "We see it as our job to motivate people to work on their personal growth. We do that, for example, by offering half-day or full-day courses in a very low-threshold manner, including from the Doorzaam system, a fund of the temporary employment industry for sustainable employability and personal development. We promote this firmly among our people. You'd be surprised what a one-day course can do for a person's employability. The courses on offer range from safety training or forklift truck training to a computer course to improve one's command of Microsoft Office, for example. In addition, we work locally with training institutes for more extensive practical training and make a case for more women in construction and infrastructure. Not only in the office, but also on the construction site."