The spanish gypsy population, 725 . 000 - 750 . 000 people, is situated in a historic situation of disadvantage when compared to the labour market. A labour gap brought about by a range of factors such as lower level of education, but also to discrimination and lack of opportunities, which is more acute in the case of gypsy women. With unemployment rates 52 per cent, with a rate of activity 39 % in the case of gypsy women, the present article shows how, with specific actions and programmes for those social groups that are most in vulnerability, such as the Access of the fundación Secretariado Gitano, contributes to reducing the gap work significantly.

KEYWORDS: employment, roma, inequality, women, discrimination.

The Roma population in Spain, with estimated 725 , 000 - 750 , 000 people, is at a historical disadvantage in the labour market. A labour gap caused by various factors such as lower educational level, but also by discrimination and lack of opportunities, which is more accentuated in the case of Roma women. With an unemployment rate of 52 % and an activity rate of 39 % in the case of Roma women, this article shows how specific actions and programs targeted for those groups that are in a situation of greater vulnerability, contribute to reducing the labour gap significantly. It is the case of the Acceder program of Fundación Secretariado Gitano.

KEY WORDS: employment, Roma population, inequality, women.

At present it is estimated that the spanish gypsy population is 725 . 000 - 750 . 000 people ¹ , representing 1 , 5 per cent of the total population, being one of the most numerous minorities in europe. To understand the labour gap affecting the roma population is necessary to know in advance the broader socio-economic context and record of the roma people. And it is important to do so from the scientific evidence. The lack of disaggregated data in the general indicators of employment or social situation, invisibiliza the reality of the roma people and that means that on many occasions not given an adequate response from public policies.

Therefore, the fundación Secretariado Gitano is regularly conducted specific studies on the roma population to highlight the reality with data of the roma and gypsy comparative, turning to the rest of the population, as well as measuring progress over time. All specific studies on the reality of the roma people have rightly pointed out that the roma population is one of the groups in situations of greater social vulnerability and that he suffers from a structural inequality and multidimensional; a situation exacerbated by the factor of discrimination and antigitanismo.

TheComparative study on the situation of gypsies in spain in relation to employment and poverty 2018 ² provides the most up-to-date a series of studies ( 2005 and 2011 ) focused on employment, making the comparison with the whole of the spanish population (following the model of the EPA) and incorporating new indicators, in addition, to have an overall view of the roma.

In addition to the quantitative study of the main demographic characteristics and socio-laborales of the roma population, the investigation, the team from the Fundación Iseak, led by Sara from the rich (Univ. of País Vasco ), gives detailed information on roma households to make a thorough study of poverty ³ .

One of the preliminary findings of the Study shows the demographic differences which presents the gypsy population in comparison with the general population, and tell a very young population, 66 per cent of the roma population is younger than 30 years, while only 30 per cent of the general population in Spain is below the age of marriage, noting also in sharp decline of the population became more acute since the 60 years. You can therefore affirm that the roma population presents a composition by age is radically different to that of the general population, being the first much younger than the second demographic differences. These will be essential to understand the differences in labour subsequently found between the two groups.

The level of education provided by the study illustrate two factors essential differentials in comparing education levels among the roma population and the general population. Firstly, the differences in educational level reached between the two populations and, secondly, a gender divide very substantial contribution to the roma population that is not observed in the general population.

Starting with lower levels of education, data show that between the roma population the 14 per cent of women and 6 per cent of men are illiterate, while for the national total, the incidence of illiteracy is practically non-existent in both men and women. Moreover, as only 17 per cent of the roma more 16 for years has completed studies of THAT or higher, compared to almost 80 per cent of the general population, and turning to education as one of the factors responsible for most of the inequality gap between men and roma women of the standards of the rest of the population and that is the educational level, by far, the main determinant for employment, and therefore the socio-economic inequality of the roma.

A roma where poverty and exclusion affecting more than 80 per cent of all families. 46 per cent is extremely poor, or equivalent income more than half of the roma population is below 310 €.The child poverty rate stands at 89 % compared to 30 , 7 per cent in the general population. Moreover, the roma people were remarkable ¬ mind bigger in size: almost a 50 % live in households of two adults with children, 32 per cent of the total population.

Only 26 per cent of roma persons perceived labour incomewith an average wage of 754 €, compared to almost 60 per cent of the general population with an average wage of 1 . 250 € ⁴ . In this way, although unemployment rates are much higher for the gypsy population, only 6 % unemployment benefits, 13 % of the general population.

With regard to the social assistance, in this study showed that only 31 per cent of households in extreme poverty and the 33 per cent of those who are in severe poverty receive social assistance. The income per household in the roma population (by equivalent unit) are significantly lower than in the general population, still the most frequent equivalent income which is among the 250 €and 300 €( 1 . 034 for the general population), translates into a high incidence of poverty.

In this context of severe inequality joins the factor of discrimination on ethnic origin and antigitanismo

⁵ (the ministry of equality), published in 2020 , it reflects that of all population groups surveyed, the roma population is one of those who allegedly experienced higher levels of discrimination:

in the heart of the roma community: of all roma persons who alleged that they had suffered discrimination in the past 12 months, only the 11 , 5 % replied have filed a complaint or allegation, compared to 18 , 2 per cent of the total of the respondents.

All these situations occur in a context in which hate speech and anti-gypsyism increases propagates through social networks, where hate speech anti-gypsyism, for the first time, are the most frequent ⁶ .

The last annual report of the specialized Fundacion Secretariado Gitano,Discrimination and Roma Community 2023 , documents, at least, 532 cases of discrimination and antigitanismo ⁷ .

According to the outcome of the above-mentioned Study, the situation of gypsies with regard to employment differs substantially from the situation of the general population. In particular, an important part of ¬ tante work that the roma people in the family environment and often defined as being “ unpaid family aid ”, something that has little relevance when we refer to the general population. This report focuses, however, in the work done outside the context of the family with the aim of tracking and a comprehensive study of the characteristics that a person to have an occupation rather than family to such support, either as employees or as independent.

The economic crisis which began in 2008 had a strong impact on employment and socio-economic situation of the roma. The series of studies in the years 2005 , 2011 and that of 2018 , show that labour indicators 2005 , which showed a clear inequality, have deteriorated in those years further widen the gap with the rest of the population and is still a long way to restore the situation before the crisis.

The data below show that the occupational distribution of the roma in comparison with the general population is very mixed: the impact of the occupation is much lower among the roma population, the incidence of unemployment much longer and the gender gap is much greater differences.

In the following table reflects the main figures provided by this study in comparison to the general population learned from the Encuesta de población Activa (EPA) ¬ tes the correspondent 4 º quarter 2018 .

The differences in the activity rate between the roma population and the general population are not significant, 56 per cent of roma people are employed or unemployed or, as had already been happening in the previous studies. However, when observing ¬ mos the activity rate by gender, is where we are very significant differences, because the activity rate for roma women falls to the 38 per cent, while for men is 76 per cent owing to the dedication of many women to household work and family responsibilities.

the roma population is included at a younger age compared to the labour market.This difference in entry to the labour market is a significant difference of educational levels between the population.

The occupation of the roma with a rate of 30 % (values far below those of the general population whose employment rate is 50 %), will increase dramatically when the education level. Thus, those with levels of education, secondary or higher education have prevalence rates of occupation in close proximity to the general population.

There are also large differences in the composition of employment.The roma population, only 53 per cent of employed persons are salaried employees (more than 80 per cent for the general population), while individuals represent 47 % (less than 20 per cent for the general population).

As a high incidence of self-employment is due to the pre valencia from the sale in the streets and remains the predominant working activities for the roma people who are the subject of more than one third of the work of the territories, mostly men. This same activity also affects roma women, but not to consider, as occupied mayoritariamen ¬ you are included within the household/family activity and are therefore at a greater vulnerability.

Little employment and in precarious conditions. The high burden of self-employment and the low quality of waged work with rates of temporality of 73 % a 16 % of employees without a contract, paints a scenario marked by the weak protection in employment and subsequently in access to unemployment benefits and pensions, where the non-contributory benefits.

It should be noted that 19 , 3 per cent of roma people at risk of poverty are incorporated into the labour market and are employed, so that we can take it that are members of the group of poor workers.

The descualificación of game with which the vast majority of roma people to the labour market explains that focus on sectors of activity and poorly paid protected From. 2005 the number of unemployed had risen. The crisis has affected unevenly people with lower educational levels by keeping them off. So long-term unemployment (more than a year) affect more than 70 per cent of unemployed roma people and the chronicity (more than four years unemployed) affect more than 35 per cent.

The 63 per cent of young roma between 16 and 29 there is a problem of studying and is not working.This percentage has declined in the general population until 15 per cent since the high rates that have suffered the worst crisis years.

The situation of roma women is very uneven and worse than that of men gypsies, and worst female roma not in any of the indicators analysed.The inequality gap determined by the status of being a woman is highly significant and affects all aspects: the labour situation, in educational levels, in family responsibilities and even in low expectations and little chance of outreach and advocacy.

The most positive and reinforcing the relevance of education, is that those women who have at least THAT is completed, are much more likely to take up salaried employment, 32 per cent of female employees are this certification, while boys gypsies with THIS account 25 per cent of the territories, the educational level is today the best predictor of socio-economic progress and participation of roma women.

Overcoming THAT triggered the chances for employment in roma women. However, the responsabi ¬ lidades families, and especially the care of children, reduces the positive impact of education in their labour inclusion.

In relation to participation in employment there is a huge gender gap between girls and boys gypsies. The participation of women in work reaches only 38 , 5 %

These inequalities we see in the repeatedoccupancy rateunemployment rateof 60 per cent for roma women, 13 points higher than men.

Of these roma women in situation of inactivity, a 17 per cent of roma women do not seek a job because they believe that you will find, and 36 % do not seek by their family responsibilities. Whilst the barrier separating men roma employment is mostly the low educational level achieved, for women, in this crucial add family responsibility, and since the number of children is significantly higher in households gypsies,this responsibility exclusively away to the women of the labour market.

It also called attention to gender differences regarding expectations towards employment: although a majority of roma women are groping for a job, the vast majority of them show that of his party do not expect they do or do so, unlike men gypsies, where there is a perfect alignment between its personal expectations and hopes that its environment.

In this context of particular vulnerability affecting the gypsy population, and particularly to roma women, since the fundación Secretariado Gitano has always advocated the need to initiate programmes and actions tailored to the reality and the profile of persons.

This is the point of departure browser to access, an initiative that promotes the mainstreaming of the roma to the labour market as a puer ¬ ta access to social inclusion in that way encouraging equal opportunities. To achieve this goal, the Access programme has developed a comprehensive response that supports the opportunities of roma in the labour market, especially through the formula in employment.

Access the programme was launched in the year 2000 from the experience of a project developed between experi-mental 1998 and 1999 in a district Madrid The programme, financed mainly by the european Social fund, has permeated various territories and is present in 14 autonomous communities.

As of year 2000 Access was a pioneer in the development of a methodology of personalized itineraries entering the labour market, especially through information, a diagnosis and definition of a professional, Objective, the accompanying individual and group counselling, the development of competence, occupational and professional training, prospecting and bringing the supply side, supervision during the processes of self-employment and participation in other areas of employment integration; Actions that will contribute, inter alia:

• Increase the employability of the roma population and employment opportunities, through the development of competencies, skills and knowledge needed for access and retention in the labour market.
• Improve the professional skills and access of roma people to professions and jobs.
• Zoom in the labour market and therefore companies workers gypsies, to achieve greater equality of opportunity with regard to the recruitment processes.
• Improving the competitive development of projects of vendors, the establishment of viable businesses on the part of the roma population, helping in the processes of self-employment.
• The generalization of active employment policies for the roma people in order to effectively improve their living conditions.

Persons entering the browser to access a personalized itinerary — thanks to the professional profiles of the Access of cross-cultural mediation, job orientation and prospecting —, through a process to facilitate their access to the labour market and improve their skills and capabilities with a specific depth ¬. This itinerary includes a holistic work from the individual situation of the person, their family environment, community and context in which we find

itineraries Accessare composed of various activities or mo-mentos, characterized by:

Theguidance and B.A.E. (Active Pursuit of employment) include the accompaniment, support and follow-up to each participant integration; since the initial stages of diagnosis to reception and monitoring and support of the already in employment, including vocational training and skill development, the preparation and presentation of candidatures.

Theprovide training in the framework of actions, represent the Access key tool for improving professional competences and of the participants, all through multiple activities and training options.

• Learn To Work
• Training in basic skills and digital (based on DigComp), and relaciona-dos to developing a set of skills and personal, social and digital prepares participants.

access to employment, and the subsequent follow-up, the last part of the process, and in this case study focuses on facilitating their insertion first, and accompany once the person is not working. At this time, is particularly important labor intermediation with companies that pursues the rapprochement of the roma to the labour market, through the detection of job opportunities and training, management of job vacancies, and corporate alliances that share the objectives of Access. It places companies as a key partner in this process of integration into the labour market for an employer, which means that part of the ecosystem created by the programme.

5 . 1 The approach of the gender programme: the Access Calí as specific answer.

• In parallel, accessing developed a community awareness work, trying to highlight the importance of the participation of roma women in a programme for the whole of the roma population.

1 each 3 roma women had participated in the programme has employed.

The experience of the programme to access, together with data that has developed a number of studies have been showing, allowed us to identify a specific need linked to the reality of roma women in situations of greater vulnerability that, for his personal circumstances, family or social, had no capacity or expectations of the labour market and therefore were not coming to the browser to access. A segment of roma women requiring work through social and occupational itineraries.

Our response to this specific situation was the launch of the agenda Cali. For equality of roma women,a pioneering initiative, not only in spain, but for the whole of the european union, to develop specific actions in the framework of the european Social fund (operational programme for Social Inclusion and Social economy, POISES) to promote equality of roma women in most disadvantaged from a holistic approach. Calí has worked equal opportunities through personalized itineraries for the improvement of employability and social inclusion of roma women, especially the profiles in situation of enhanced vulnerability; gender equality and shared responsibility between men and roma women; support for women victims of gender-based violence; as well as equality of treatment and combating discrimination and antigitanismo, addressing in particular of intersectional discrimination suffered by roma women.

Specialisation within Access with a segment of women socio-economic profile characterized by:

• The majority are among the 25 and 45 years ( 55 , 6 %).
• Seven out of ten participants is the mother. Women with children, 81 per cent are between 1 and 3 descendants.
• The presence of women alone by his or her children is significant, but is not widespread, with a 15 , 4 monomarentales per cent of households.
• In general, the monthly income of the family unit are very low (with an average of 530 euros): almost half ( 45 , 7 %) earn less than 500 euros, and the other half between 500 and 1 . 000 euros.A significant number of households receive social benefits such as autonomous minimum income or the IMV.
• The 95 percent can read and write; more than half ( 63 , 4 per cent) have only Primary studies.

In response to this profile of women since the programme has worked Calí with individualized pathways to facilitate their social inclusion, its pre-job training and employability in which it has intensified the actions that contribute to the acquisition or skill enhancement sociopersonal development, with a subjective value in the high esteem and confidence in the same as they are associated to the autonomy and self-perception of that can be done successfully. This is knowledge and skills that are highly mediated by the position of gender of the participants. The acquisition of personal tools that can change the perception of the same is the most positive impacts that it strikes the Calí programme.

It also has caused the participants to acquire and/or improve competencies pre-ocupacionales. It Is one of the results we achieved a net effect the highest impact instrumental belief subjective of women as women workers. It generates a's outside the home and outside the economic sphere, with regard to family own expectations.

Since the year 2016 more than 4 thousand roma women have undergone the Calí, being implemented 1 . 546 training sessions on personal development and 406 occupational training courses and digital skills. As A key results, 2 . 457 women have been activated in the labour market and over 280 studies have resumed the regulated.

5 . 2 . 20 years of the programme Access: assessment, learning and main findings.

After more than 20 years of development of the programme to access, in which there has been the necessary methodological adjustments, 2021 the fundación Secretariado Gitano commissioned an external evaluation (carried out by the consultant Network 2 Red) to analyse results and impact of the programme. One of the main conclusions of the evaluation of results and impact of the programme Access 2000 - 2020 is that the efficiency of the model for intervention in entering the labour market access is based on the adaptation of specific profiles of each participant and the needs of the labour market, in partnership with industry.

Some of the achievements in terms of Access during the programme 20 years here are:

• 109 . 875 people have gone through the programme, 11 per cent of the spanish gypsy population, a 16 , 5 % if we talk about the potentially active population live.
• 82 . 091 have improved their employment situation, through the development of customized itineraries.
• 33 . 344 people have achieved a job.
• 91 . 733 signed contracts.
• 33 . 664 people were trained.
• 15 . 967 firms have already collaborated and contributed to the labour market participation of roma population, with the involvement of large companies like Accenture, Alcampo, Carrefour, Ikea, Clece, Amazon, etc.
• The 40 per cent of those who have gone through the programme has succeeded in work.

The opportunity to evaluate a programme such as Access has helped us obtain findings regarding the scope of the agenda, but also on the efficiency of the intervention and the proceedings, its sustainability and impact. The conclusions and learning of these more than 20 easy years:

• Specialized responses are necessary for the use of the most vulnerable groups, such as Access programme, as well as benefiting from these experiences by integrating them into the framework of active employment policies.
• The programme Access is an effective programme makes 4 each 10 persons participating in a personalized insertion find work.
• Finally, the possibility of direct referrals stands as a valuable service connects directly to individuals and professionals for support. In establishing this path of referral, easier access to our resources and specialized services. This is not only facilitates the process for those looking for support, but also strengthens the support network, creating synergies among professionals of different disciplines.
• Working with companies has been instrumental in access to employment of the roma population. The majority of roma persons who have been in the programme have benefited from this intermediation in companies ( 7 each 10 ), reaching a very relevant in the case of roma women.
• Count on the title of this represents a substantial increase in rates of insertion, especially in the case of roma women. Actions to improve the educational level of the roma are determinants and instrumental in the development of customized itineraries.
• Improve the employability through training improves the chances of finding a job over 15 ppa.
• Have a clear approach to results from the beginning of the programme, Access has been instrumental in generating relating among the roma community for its admission to employment, mainly in employment.

On the qualitative impact it is noteworthy that the programme Access:

• Has contributed to improving the quality of lifeof the roma people generating job opportunities, providing training and facilitating access to employment.
• Had helped to revitalize the role of education, return educational and training.
• It has been a catalyst for change essential for advance the progress of roma women through their incorporation into the labour market.
• It was a good antidote against discrimination and antigitanismo,helping to break down prejudices and negative stereotypes.

The main conclusion is that Access is an effective and efficient programme provided access to employment 4 each 10 people, which proves that, with adequate resources and appropriate policies, it is possible to combat inequality