With Envergure, Actual group continues to support Ukrainian refugees in their path toward integration through work.

Set up by Envergure – a subsidiary of Actual group – in the weeks following the invasion of Ukraine, this dedicated program has supported and trained more than 500 refugees. A long-term commitment to integration through work.

This study, conducted in the second half of 2024, reveals a significant drop in French working people's confidence in their future, linked to a context of political and economic uncertainty.

For over a year, the war in Ukraine has forced tens of thousands of residents to flee and seek refuge in Europe. A wave of solidarity immediately took shape, particularly in France, to assist these populations at risk. Following emergency aid, the second phase of the welcoming process began: integration. Actual group is convinced that integration comes through securing employment, an essential complement to access to healthcare, finding housing, and support with administrative procedures. Envergure, Actual group’s support and training organization, has been working for many years on the integration of foreign nationals through work. In 2022, more than 500 beneficiaries of temporary protection (72% of whom were women) were welcomed by Envergure's teams.

Deployed since the start of the conflict, the support process was organized in three phases. First, the initial step consisted of identifying and welcoming refugees, working in collaboration with regional authorities (préfectures). To facilitate contact and overcome the language barrier, Envergure published an explanatory flyer in French and Ukrainian and activated a toll-free number as well as a dedicated digital space. Once contact was established, a staff member speaking Ukrainian, Russian, and English took charge of providing information on the program, securing the pathway, and guiding individuals to a professional integration advisor. The individual interview, complemented by various tests to establish a precise assessment, led to the formalization of an individual action plan and follow-up procedures for accessing employment. This made it possible to offer career guidance and ensure smooth job onboarding when entering the company, thanks to synergies between Envergure, Actual group, and economic stakeholders.

Throughout this year, numerous exchanges between Envergure's teams and refugees helped identify two main challenges for successful integration: overcoming the language barrier and simplifying social administrative procedures. Job training combining professional French language learning was thus deployed, along with specific support for social procedures to access rights or find housing. The arrival of these populations, with their talents (80% of beneficiaries stated they had completed higher education), motivation, and experience, is an opportunity for our country. It is therefore in the interest of society as a whole to successfully integrate them. Envergure's teams were thus able to train and guide candidates toward shortage occupations, where companies struggle to recruit. This includes sectors such as hospitality and catering, retail, and personal care services.

The war in Ukraine and the exodus of part of its population is a tragedy that highlights a more global phenomenon: the challenge of integrating foreign nationals arriving in the country. For over a year for Ukrainians, but for much longer for other refugees, Envergure has been working to support, guide, and train these populations. As a result, 1,000 people per year benefit from this support. This approach aligns with Actual group's values, which consider employment a key to integration. Employment contributes to personal fulfillment, a sense of belonging to a community, and recognition by society—three criteria that foster the most successful integration possible.

About Actual

Today, as the 5th largest player in the labor and employment market in France, Actual group is a French group with a resolutely humanistic vision, advocating daily to make the right to work accessible to everyone. Structured around 4 core businesses – temporary work, recruitment, support, and training – the group is No. 1 in temporary work for social integration in France. Led by Samuel Tual, a committed entrepreneur, Actual group has developed genuine expertise in supporting people into employment across France, as well as in Spain, Portugal, and Switzerland, through employment solutions and skills development. The group also offers a comprehensive range of HR solutions to support companies and find or build the skills they need. Thanks to its 4,000 employees and more than 600 agencies across the territory, Actual group currently supports 33,000 companies and 156,000 job seekers, achieving a revenue of 1.5 billion in 2024. Its ambition is to build the work of men and women together, everywhere in France.

Contacts, information and practical links

Michaël Draï
Actual group press office
Tel:06 60 41 86 78
Email:drai@uneidee.com

Guillaume Neron Bancel
Actual group Communications
Email:guillaume.neronbancel@groupeactual.eu