ArmInfo.There is no limit to the number of beneficiaries of the Artsakh employment program in Armenia. This was stated by Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of Armenia Ruben Sargsyan during a press conference on April 1.
"Yes, the program is designed for 1000 beneficiaries, but if more people are willing to join it, there will be no problems or restrictions, we will involve more," he assured.
Within the framework of the program 397 tripartite agreements have already been signed between the citizen, the employer and the Unified Social Service of the RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.
Sargsyan recalled that the program consists of 3 components, a prerequisite for each of which is employment: vocational training, practice, and joint vocational training and practice. Artsakh refugees are most interested in the 2nd component of the program. As the Deputy Minister noted, Construction and service sectors predominate. In total, 6,792 Artsakh residents were registered with the Unified Social Service, of which 4,418 received the status of unemployed. 1,992 citizens of Artsakh managed to find employment. At the same time, regarding those employed, Sargsyan clarified that this is not about the beneficiaries of the program: "Employers often contact us at the Unified Social Service and provide data on the existing demand at their enterprises in terms of labor. This helps us direct registered citizens immediately to a specific employer," he said.
Sargsyan reminded that beneficiaries of the state program can be the citizens of Artsakh aged 16 to 63, who were forcibly displaced to Armenia in September 2023 as a result of Azerbaijani aggression. The program to stimulate the employment of Artsakh refugees was approved by the Government of Armenia in January 2024 and consists of 3 components. The first component is vocational training followed by compulsory employment for at least three months, the second component is paid internship followed by compulsory employment for at least three months, and the third component is vocational training followed by paid internship and employment.
In the case of the first component, forcibly displaced people from Nagorno-Karabakh will be offered vocational training lasting up to five months. During this period, the employer must decide in which educational institution and training center the training will be conducted. The beneficiary of the program will be paid a scholarship for 50 thousand drams and another 50 thousand drams for tuition fees. Then, having presented a certificate of completion of the training period, they will sign an employment contract with the employer for at least 3 months and within three months the employer will be reimbursed taxes for 50,000 drams. "At the same time, we will provide both tuition fees and a stipend for participation days. And if the employer does not sign the employment contract or terminates it before the expiration of three months, then the beneficiary will be compensated for the scholarship and tuition fees," said Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Narek Mkrtchyan. The second component concerns gaining paid work experience and internships. A six-month contract is concluded between the employer and the beneficiary, three months of which are necessarily considered as paid work experience. The authorities will provide the employer with 165,000 drams monthly to pay the beneficiary's salary and related taxes.
After completing the internship, the employer undertakes to provide the beneficiary with work for another three months, for which the employer is paid a maximum of 50,000 drams per month for three months to pay mandatory taxes. In the event of termination of the employment contract concluded between the employer and the beneficiary before the expiration of six months, the employer is obliged to fully return the amount paid to the beneficiary as salary from the amount provided to him during the internship. The third component involves everything together: vocational training, practice, and a mandatory condition for employment.
To become a beneficiary of the program, please contact the Unified Social Service, which has 49 offices throughout Armenia.
