Pakolaisapu opens new Sauma employment-coaching round for refugees and newcomers in Helsinki

The Finnish Refugee Council (Suomen Pakolaisapu) has announced that a fresh six-week cycle of its Sauma työelämävalmennus (Sauma Employment Coaching) programme began this week and will run until 6 October in central Helsinki. The free course is aimed at recently arrived refugees and other migrants on the capital area’s job market who lack extensive vocational training. Sessions are held three times a week at Oodi Library and a community space in Vallila. Participants receive targeted coaching on CV writing in Finnish, interview practice and workplace culture. This round partners with private-care provider Kotipalvelu Mehiläinen Oy, guaranteeing every trainee an interview for personal-assistant roles—a sector suffering acute labour shortages and complex shift patterns that often deter applicants unfamiliar with Finnish work-time rules. Programme coordinator Elena Tamminen says demand is strong: “We had over 120 applications for 25 seats; places went first to quota refugees and Ukrainians on temporary protection who have limited local networks.” For employers, Sauma is a fast track to vetted, motivated talent that has already received basic orientation in occupational safety and trade-union structures. Mobility managers supporting dependant spouses of foreign specialists often refer clients because the course can shorten the path from residence permit to first payslip, helping families meet the self-sufficiency thresholds the Immigration Service (Migri) applies when extensions are due. The next Sauma intake will open for registration on 18 August 2027, but Pakolaisapu says it may add an extra winter cohort if funding from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment is approved.