Maciej first trained as a mechanic technician at the Technical High School of Wieruszow, Poland, before following his passion for food with a professional cookery course at the Cracow School of Restaurateurs.
After graduating from his culinary course he decided to follow his second passion for travelling and made his way to the UK. After a brief time working in construction, he found employment in the restaurant industry and within three years had worked his way up to Head Chef.
Yet, life in London wasn’t quite what he had hoped. Feeling dissatisfied in his current position, and experiencing the loneliness that many expats come to feel, Maciej decided that he would like to join his relatives in Italy. However, with no experience in Italian cuisine, the language or culture he thought that his dream was impossible.
Then, just when he thought there was no hope, he met with EURES Adviser, Stefania Garofalo. On hearing about his situation, Stefania thought that Your First EURES Job (YFEJ) would be the ideal solution. Your First EURES Job is a job mobility scheme to help young Europeans, aged between 18 and 30, find work in other EU countries.
Speaking of his interaction with EURES, Maciej said,“Stefania Garofalo helped me to find a traineeship and a language course. She was in contact with me every step of the way.”
Stefania coached and assisted Maciej, helping him enroll in the YFEJ, and found him a suitable trainee position in northeast Italy in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, with a busy but cozy Italian restaurant in the center of Pordenone, “AllaCatina”.
Maciej had worried at first about the language barrier, especially in the work place but is finding that it isn’t such an issue.
“In the “AllaCatina” restaurant there are a lot of young people who can speak English but also many Italian native speakers, which is really motivating and helping me to learn this language”he added.
Maciej is settling in well into his new life in northeast Italy, and has already bought himself a car to get around more easily.
Speaking of his experience with YFEJ Maciej said, “My experience with EURES has been very good from the beginning. I think that EURES offers a huge opportunity for young people who want to explore a European country and wish to gain the experiences and skills they need.”
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Details
- Publication date
- 13 September 2017
- Authors
- European Labour Authority | Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
- Topics
- Business / EntrepreneurshipEURES best practiceSuccess storiesYouth
- Related section(s)
- Living and Working
- Sector
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