​PKN ORLEN has become a new partner of the State Fund for Rehabilitation of the Disabled (PFRON), as a declaration of cooperation for disabled people was signed at the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy. The Secretary of State at the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy and Government Representative for the Disabled, Krzysztof Michałkiewicz, took patronage over the initiative.

The declaration was signed by Wiesław Protasewicz, Member of the PKN ORLEN Management Board for Finance, and Marlena Maląg, President of the PFRON Management Board. Thanks to the declaration signed between the two institutions, employment opportunities for people with disabilities will be offered at the ORLEN Group.

“Business must go hand in hand with social functions and set an example. Therefore we strive to remove barriers in all aspects of our activity. As the largest service station operator in Poland with almost 1,800 locations within our network, we take care to ensure that our facilities can be accessed by all customers. And these efforts are not limited to infrastructure, as we test and implement the latest solutions vital for service availability, such as the pay at the pump system. We apply a barrier-free approach in our immediate environment as well. This is why we intend to gradually increase the number of disabled people working at the ORLEN Group. The declaration signed today takes us one step closer to this goal,” said Wiesław Protasewicz, Member of the Management Board of PKN ORLEN, Finance.

‘Active Plus’ is an initiative of the State Fund for Rehabilitation of the Disabled to promote professional activity of people with disabilities and facilitate their employment in the open labour market. It consists of three programmes: Graduates, Stable Employment and Work–Integration. Their total budget is PLN 35.3m.

“Our shared duty is to make every effort to ensure that people with disabilities can take full advantage of their rights, be active members of society and feel needed, and that the world around them is friendly and understands their needs and way of life.” The jobless rate in Poland has reached a historical low, which presents a unique opportunity to increase the number of disabled people in employment. I am pleased and proud to welcome PKN ORLEN among disability-friendly companies committed to promoting the employment of disabled people,” said Krzysztof Michałkiewicz, Government Representative for the Disabled.

The Work–Integration programme aims to promote employment of people with disabilities by large corporations pursuing a CSR mission. The programme budget is PLN 8m. Under the project, funds to recruit, place with a designated employer and offer employment support to disabled people are provided to non-governmental organisations selected by the PFRON in a competitive process.

“In order to successfully promote employment of people with disabilities, we focus on collaboration with various institutions and organisations. We seek out job opportunities for the disabled in public administration and state-controlled companies. So far we have established partnerships with the Polish Post and the Enea Group,” explains Marlena Maląg, President of the PFRON Management Board, who cited the hiring of 200 disabled people as an example of successful implementation of the Work–Integration programme by the Polish Post and the Employment Promotion Foundation. “I am convinced that the collaborative partnership we have just forged with PKN ORLEN will be equally beneficial,” added the PFRON President.

Funds under the Work–Integration programme may be used to recruit and identify the needs of people with disabilities, and to enable them to gain useful qualifications and professional or workplace skills. Funding opportunities are also offered for projects designed to remove barriers to employment, pay incentive allowances as compensation for increased costs of a disabled person taking up employment, and use innovative methods of work intended to keep a disabled person in employment.