Umana: over 4,500 contracts for refugees from 2023
For the third year running, the employment agency has been awarded the “Welcome. Working for Refugee Integration” prize by the UNHCR
For the third year running, the Umana employment agency has received the “Welcome. Working for Refugee Integration” award from the UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency), presented on World Refugee Day. The employment agency, led by its managing director Giuseppe Venier, has secured over 4,500 employment contracts for refugees since 2023. The number of contracts has been rising year on year, with a 19.7 per cent increase in 2025.
Venier sees the award as confirmation of the “value of the work we carry out every day to promote the inclusion of refugees and asylum seekers in the workplace. We believe that work is a fundamental tool for integration and independence, as well as a practical response to the needs of businesses and local communities. Through career guidance, training and work placement programmes, delivered in collaboration with local institutions and partners, we help to create opportunities that generate value for both individuals and the wider economy.”
To be more specific, since 2023, Umana has arranged 4,566 employment contracts to place refugees and asylum seekers in its client companies. In 2025 alone, there were 1,639 job placements, representing a 19.7% increase compared with 2023. In 2025, the 26–30 age group was the most common among refugees hired on temporary agency contracts (465 people). There were 1,335 men and 304 women, from a variety of backgrounds: the countries most represented were Pakistan (262 people), Nigeria (161), Bangladesh (144) and Burkina Faso (105). At a continental level, Africa is the main region of origin, with 799 workers placed, followed by Asia (501) and Central and South America (167).
