"My workmates, too, are all very friendly and give me help when I need it,"

Michael Ghebrengius is a refugee from Eritrea who is currently making very good progress whilst on a pre-apprenticeship course and gaining valuable practical experience in the workshops of the Schmidiger AG company which makes door and window frames.

The young asylum-seeker has been working there since September, under the personal guidance of Franz Schmidiger and his team.

“I enjoy working with wood,” said the young African; I like working with my hands. Indeed, Schmidiger has been very pleased with the progress the newcomer has made. “He seems to have a flair for the work, is very much involved, and his German is coming on, too.”

Understandably, the Eritrean’s standard of German meant he was not able to embark on a full apprenticeship course straight away, hence he is doing this so-called integration pre-apprenticeship course, which is offered to those refugees whose application for asylum has been provisionally accepted. Having successfully completed this, he can then go on take a normal apprenticeship. “At present Michael is gaining hands-on experience with us here three days a week and attends school on the other two days; it is there he is getting help in mathematics, IT and German,” said Schmidiger.

The young refugee mentioned how, initially, his lack of German was a problem, but now definite progress is being made, and in other subjects, too. “In addition to Mr Schmidiger, all my workmates are very friendly towards me,” he said. “If I need any help, they are always there for me.” Indeed, this support from colleagues is all very much part of his integration, it is all part of what the course is about, helping refugees to be able to stand on their own two feet in the country one day.

Along with Ghebrengius, another Eritrean is learning at the company, working with the same enthusiasm and determination as his compatriot. “I think is that we should show a more positive attitude to these refgees,” said Schmidiger, who felt that such courses they were on of benefit to companies, too, while admitting that additional time had to be spent on helping them. “Of course, we notice Michael is from a different culture, both through the way he works and with regard to quality, but, with all the support he gets from the team, he is forging ahead.”