Smoothing the transition from reintegration to a durable job

Between the Ourcq Canal and the tangled railtracks of the Gare de l'Est station, the Curial, Cambrai, Karr and Riquet districts of 19^th Arrondissement of Paris accommodate a very dense population (about 35 000).
Longstanding working class neighbourhoods, they also suffer a high jobless rate.
Régie de Quartier du 19^ème Nord opened its doors in January 2003 to try to help. This nonprofit gathers together the inhabitants, regional authorities and social lenders.

Its goal? To train persons in serious difficulty through back-to-work contracts, while providing the population with proximity services to enhance their quality of life.
To do this, the Régie has developed three types of activity: janitorial services for the common parts of buildings, reconditioning apartments and cellars before an official appraisal, upkeep of open spaces, miscellaneous refurbishing, cleanup and handyman activities.
This variety of actions, combined with the considerable needs of the population, means that it employs about fifty persons under back-to-work contracts.

More specialized operations

After the early years spent expanding the range of its operations, Régie de Quartier has now decided to specialize some of its projects for the dual purpose of offering its employees higher level, even qualifying training, and provide the inhabitants with sorely needed additional services.

With the grant from the Veolia foundation, Régie de Quartier plans to buy a dump truck and new equipment for landscaping projects, and for plumbing, electricity and masonry operations. After their back-to-work training, the Régie's employees can thus hope to find a durable job more easily in conventional firms.