Outplacement - barriers and challenges of implementation by small and medium-sized enterprises in Poland

Abstract

Under the conditions of the global financial and economic crisis restructuring undertaken by companies often is associated with the optimization of operating costs in the dimension of human capital. Relatively little popular technique is responsible outplacement, which can reduce the risk of long-term unemployment and maintains the key competencies by the employees and organizations. At the same time public and private employment services usually have no experience in implementing outplacement programs. Small and medium-sized enterprises have difficulties in availability of those services. This paper is based on a critical analysis of the literature and a study conducted in Podlaskie Voivodship in 2012 under the project 'Innovations in the corner - testing and implementation of new methods of outplacement'. The study included a series of in-depth interviews, focus groups and quantitative CATI research among entrepreneurs and employees. Main conclusions lead to the claim that outplacement should be popularized as good practice of corporate social responsibility. The implementation of such programs can be done by increasing the role of social economy actors - in particular non-governmental organizations that carry out tasks in the field of labor market policy. (Conference paper for 11th Annual ESPAnet Conference "Social Policy and Economic Development", September 5-7, 2013, Poznań University of Economics).