ABOUT MECan you tell us about your previous work experience or accomplishments?My longest work experience was in my youth, when I worked for seven years as a warehouse manager at a meat processing plant in Valmiera. My last official job was 24 years ago in Ireland. Unfortunately, I fell ill and returned to Latvia. It
In May, training for employers interested in hiring individuals with special needs was held in Valmiera, Latvia, as part of the Stronger Together project. The Swedish social enterprise Restaff from Norrköping also attended the seminar, later contributing as a supporting organization in the employee training activities in Sweden organized by Coompanion Östergötland. As part of
Stronger Together: Supporting Individuals with Special Needs into Employment Read More »
Knowledge and understanding are essential keywords for promoting work integration. Both among employers, employees, and society as a whole, including buyers of products and services. We already had training for entrepreneurs, now we are moving further and helping to prepare for the labor market for those who have so far been excluded from it due
On May 14 of this year, at Cēsu Street 4 in Valmiera, the Valmiera Development Agency, together with partners of the “STRONGER TOGETHER” project (Project No. CB0300234), organized a training seminar for employers titled “Innovative Employment Practice – Employee as a Service.” The seminar became a significant platform for representatives from various countries and sectors
On March 27–28, 2025, a face-to-face meeting of partners from the international project “Stronger Together” took place in Valmiera. The event gathered representatives from the Valmiera Development Agency, the Latvian Samaritan Association, and the East Gothland Economic Association (Coompanion Östergötland Ekonomisk Förening). The main objective of the meeting was to present two significant materials developed
Valmiera Municipality has become the second-largest municipality in Latvia, distinguished by its strong manufacturing traditions that date back to the mid-20th century. Today, Valmiera Municipality serves as the business hub of the Vidzeme region, home to many of the area’s largest companies. Medium-sized enterprises are often large enough to face the challenges of major corporations
The future labour market: overcoming prejudice and promoting inclusion Read More »
On what a labor market is and could be. There are countless mental models and perceptions of how things should be—what is considered right and what is seen as odd or wrong. At both group and societal levels, this can be described as norms—an unspoken agreement about the nature of reality. Norms, or the perception
What is Normal? What is a Norm? Read More »
Already more than 20 years ago, when the Samaritan Association of Latvia started providing group apartment services, we also started to get to know the challenges of work integration. Not only in theory but very practically – in the experience of our customers, in real life. A group apartment is a place where people with
How to promote work integration – the experience of the Samaritan Association of Latvia Read More »
On October 22nd and 23rd, 2024, a meeting of the partners of the “Stronger Together” project was held in Norrköping, Sweden, in which the Valmiera Development Agency, the Samaritan Association of Latvia and the Coompanion Östergötland participated. The main goal was to develop a cross-border training program for employers so that companies could create more
Towards acceptance of diversity – a training program for employers Read More »
With the aim to reduce discrimination in workplaces and to include people with disabilities in the labour market, Valmiera Development Agency has launched the Interreg Central Baltic Sea Region project “Stronger Together towards a more inclusive labour market”.
