Employment And Right To Work Strategy Coordinator

UNITED NATIONS RELIEF AND WORKS AGENCY
FOR PALESTINE REFUGEES IN THE NEAR EAST – UNRWA
 
UNRWA is the United Nations agency responsible for the protection, care and human development of a population of some 4.6 million Palestine refugees living in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and the Syrian Arab Republic. The Agency is committed to assisting Palestine refugees in maintaining a decent standard of living, acquiring appropriate knowledge and skills, enjoying the fullest possible extent of human rights, and leading a long and healthy life. UNRWA is by far the largest UN operation in the Middle East with over 29,000 staff. Most of the staff members are refugees themselves, working directly to benefit their communities – as teachers, doctors, nurses or social workers.
Employment and Right to Work Strategy Coordinator
 

Location

Lebanon Field Office

Type of Appointment

Consultant (International)

Deadline for Application

28 September 2014

Vacancy Announcement Number

950/2014

Department/Division

Office of the Director – Programme Support Office 

 
BACKGROUND
Despite their longstanding presence in Lebanon, Palestine refugees remain excluded from key aspects of social, political and economic life in the country. They have very limited social and civil rights, restricted access to the government’s public health or educational facilities, and no access to public social services. Restrictions are also applied to their right and conditions to work in the country.
 
The majority of the 260-280,000 Palestine refugees living in Lebanon live in one of the 12 official camps or in the unofficial gatherings, usually in the vicinity of the camp. The camps in Lebanon are characterized by overcrowding, substandard shelters and infrastructure, high rates of unemployment and poor health. In this context, two-thirds of Palestine refugees live under the poverty line while 6.6% subsist in extreme poverty, spending less than the monetary equivalent necessary to cover their basic daily food needs. There are twice as many poor among Palestine refugees and occurrence of extreme poverty is four times higher as compared with the Lebanese population.
 
The complex political and economic context of Lebanon together with the restrictions imposed on Palestine refugees regarding their right to work discourage young people and many of those of working age from seeking a job or continuing their education. Currently, the Palestinian labour force reaches 120,000 of which only 37% are working. The employment rate is even lowest among refugees under 25 years old (25%) and they constitute half of the refugee population. Joblessness also has a strong gender dimension, as only 13% of those employed are women compared to 65% of men.
 
Those with a job are often in low status, casual and precarious conditions insufficient to lift them out of poverty. Further, Palestine refugee workers continue to be deprived on minimum labour rights, with only a small share receiving paid sick leave (26%), a smaller share receiving vacation leave (17%), and only 3% entitled to pension or indemnity benefits.  Nearly 80% of Palestine refugees work with an oral agreement rather than a written contract, leaving the majority vulnerable to abuse, without means of claiming rights or entitlements if they experience conflict with an employer. Only 2% of Palestine refugees hold a work permit.
 
UNRWA Lebanon’s Response
Improving access to employment for Palestinians is one of UNRWA’s key strategic objectives in Lebanon. UNRWA’s vision is for Palestine refugees to be able to obtain decent jobs, enabling them to escape from poverty and to live with dignity. In particular, UNRWA aims to enhance the employability of unskilled and low-skilled young Palestine refugees.
 
UNRWA in Lebanon works currently at different levels to enhance the employability of Palestine refugees in the country: at the educational level (from primary and secondary education to Vocational and Educational Training, as well as facilitating scholarships); at the level of supporting their links to the labour market (Employment Centres, career guidance, Community Managed Fund, Vocational Centre links to employers…) and at the level of advocacy. UNRWA also works at the policy level with a view to improving the legal status of Palestine refugees, facilitating access to work permits and to a wider range of professions. Although several programmes and units are currently working on this field and many interventions are taking place, the lack of a unified framework of action and lack of coordination in terms of strategic planning among the departments lead to a limited impact of UNRWA interventions. Moreover, UNRWA’s actions need to be closer to the needs and reality of the private sector and labour market needs. The incumbent will lead the development and coordinate the implementation of a sustainable Employment Strategy, while providing technical support to the implementing departments.
 
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES
In accordance with established Agency policy and procedures, the incumbent:
 
(A)     Develop UNRWA Lebanon Employment Strategy
i)      Undertake and in-depth desk review of all strategies, plans, analytical papers and publications that have been developed by the relevant programmes over the past 3-5 years. 
ii)     Undertake and in-depth analysis of the domestic and international factors which impact employment of Palestine refugees in Lebanon in coordination with the Research Officer and relevant departments.
iii)   Conduct participatory need assessments with relevant stakeholders.
iv)    Facilitate activities (including events, retreats, regular meetings) on Employment with the participation of relevant stakeholders.
v)     Draft UNRWA Lebanon Employment Strategy with, in line with the Agency-wide relevant Strategies (i.e. UNRWA Education Reform; TVET & Career Guidance Strategy; 2016-2021 Mid-term Strategy) including the following components: 1) TVET; 2) Career Guidance 3) Employment Service Centres 4) Self-employment 5) Community Managed Fund  5) Right to Work advocacy.
vi)    Based on the Employment Strategy, develop the LFO Employment Implementation Plan and Monitoring and Evaluation Framework.
 
(B)     Coordinate the implementation of the Employment Strategy
i)      Coordinate, facilitate and monitor the implementation of the strategy by the different department ensuring achievement of objectives and targets.
ii)     Provide quality technical programmatic advice to the departments to facilitate knowledge building and management, support the formulation, development, implementation and monitoring of projects linked to the Employment Strategy.
iii)   Contribute to developing and maintaining relations, partnerships and strong linkages with governmental bodies, private sector, education institutions, INGOs and other relevant national and international stakeholders.
 
PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCIES
(A)   Academic and Professional
Advanced university degree from an accredited educational institution in Public Administration and Governance, Economics, Political Science, Business Administration; or relevant social sciences.
 
(B)   Experience
i)      At least 8 years of relevant experience in the field of economic development, employment generation programmes and governance at UN, multilateral or bilateral international organizations and NGOs, of which at least 2 year outside one’s home country, in a development and/or humanitarian context;
ii)     Experience in multi-sectoral strategy formulation and coordination;
iii)   Experienced in active labour market programme development and implementation;
iv)    Experience in dealing with the design and delivery of programmes/projects related to the  private sector;
v)     Demonstrated experience in planning and managing development projects (preferably in conflict environments), in particularly dealing with employment related development, private sector and public-private partnership.
 
(C)   Language
i)      Excellent command of spoken and written English.
ii)     Knowledge of Arabic is an asset .
 
(D)   Skills and Competencies
i)      Knowledge on socio-economic analysis, training, service delivery, public-private partnerships and economic reform issues
ii)     Capacity to work with senior government officials, donor representatives and civil society on policy and strategic issues
iii)   Strong research, planning and writing skills
iv)    Strong quantitative and analytical skills with very good command of statistics methods and tools;
v)     Evidence of ability to think strategically; to express ideas clearly; to work independently and in intercultural teams;
vi)    Capacity responds positively to critical feedback and differing points of view
vii)  Positive attitude with ability to establish and maintain effective working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect of diversity.
 
 
CONDITIONS OF SERVICE
Salary: Monthly salary (full package) USD $5,000.-
Contract Duration: One year – Extendable according to availability of Funds.
 
EQUIVALENCY
Candidates with an equivalent combination of relevant academic qualifications, professional training and progressive work experience may also be considered.
 
GENERAL INFORMATION
UNRWA is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applications equally from men and women.

It is Agency Policy to give full consideration to qualified disabled candidates whose disability does not impact their ability to perform the duties and responsibilities of the post.
Priority will be given to fully qualify registered Palestinian refugees.

Prior to the commencement of services, the consultant shall confirm and acknowledge in writing, and provide proof of the existence of, self-procured adequate private insurance against medical, disability and accident for the duration of the contract.

As a member of the United Nations system, UNRWA maintains a close relatives’ policy.  In this regard, if a candidate has a close relative (mother, father, brother, sister, son or daughter) who is already employed by the Agency, he/she can only be employed if the Agency is unable to find another suitable candidate.
 
UNRWA staff members with fixed term appointments may apply for any consultant/contractor consultancy while in service. Upon selection, a staff member may be offered the consultant/contractor contract upon resignation from fixed term appointments and a three month break-in-service.
Candidates who are no longer employed by the Agency must have a minimum of 3 months break-in-service, before they apply to any consultant/contract positions.
 
UNRWA is a United Nations organization whose staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of integrity, neutrality and impartiality. This includes respect for human rights, for diversity, and for non-violent means of dealing with all kinds of conflict. UNRWA staffs are expected to uphold these values at all times, both at work and outside. Only persons who fully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for UNRWA jobs. UNRWA is a non-smoking working environment.
الأونروا هي منظمة تابعة للأمم المتحدة، وهي منظمة تفترض من موظفيها الالتزام بأعلى معايير الاستقامة والحياد والنزاهة. ويشمل ذلك احترام مبادئ حقوق الإنسان واحترام التنوع وتبني الوسائل غير العنيفة في حل كافة أشكال النزاعات.  المتوقع من موظفي الأونروا أن يقوموا بدعم هذه القيم في كافة الأوقات، سواء في أماكن العمل أم خارجه. إن أولئك الأشخاص الذين يتمتعون بالالتزام الكامل وغير المشروط بهذه القيم هم فقط الذين ينبغي أن يتقدموا بطلباتهم للعمل لدى الأونروا. الأنروا هي بيئه عمل لا يسمح فيها بالتدخين.
 
As an Area post, preference will be given to local candidates already based in the duty station of the post.
 
TECHNICAL & PRACTICAL TESTS REQUIRED
Not applicable.
 
INTERNVIEW
Only short-listed candidates will be invited for an interview (100%). 
 
HOW TO APPLY
If you have the skills and experience required above, and want to make an active and lasting contribution to improving the lives of Palestine refugees, then register on http://jobs.unrwa.org by creating a personal profile and completing the UNRWA Personal History Form; it is the responsibility of the candidates (internal and external) to make sure that their Personal History Form is duly completed with the needed information before they apply as amendments to the Form will not be accepted after the deadline of the vacancy announcement. Only applications received through this website will be considered and the system will not allow applications after the deadline. Please note that UNRWA only accepts degrees from accredited educational institutions. Candidates may also be invited to take a technical exam in order further evaluate their qualifications for the post. Due to a high volume of applications received, only short-listed applicants will be contacted –“سيتم الإتصال فقط بالأشخاص الذين تنطبق عليهم متطلبات الوظيفة”. The United Nations does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. The United Nations does not concern itself with information on bank accounts.
For any queries please send an email to: recruitmentquestions@unrwa.org. Please apply as requested above, do not send your CV To this email address, all cvs sent to this email address will be automatically ignored. يرجى تقديم الطلبات حسب التعليمات اعلاها وعدم ارسال السيرة الذاتية الى هذا البريد الالكتروني, سيتم تجاهل السير الذاتية التي ترسل الى هذا العنوان تلقائيا. or contact the recruitment unit on 009611840490.
 
Date of issue: 15 September 2014