Where are they now? Juliet’s journey after the Culinary Training Program
Did you know that migrant women between the ages of 25 and 35 represent a growing percentage in Modena? These women face continuous challenges and obstacles both as women and as migrants, often becoming victims of double discrimination due to both their gender and migration status.
According to the data available from the XIII Report Foreigners in the Labor Market in Italy, one of the critical issues in migrant labour, is the strong gender disparity: migrant women have significantly worse rates of employment (47.5 percent), unemployment (15.2 percent) and inactivity (43.8 percent) than men.
Despite these challenges, there are success stories women in our community work hard everyday to overcome the obstacles they face, and work for a better future for themselves and their families. One such story is that of Juliet, a migrant woman who found her path in the restaurant industry after successfully completing the Culinary Training Program.
Juliet, 25, Nigeria
Juliet, like many young migrant women in Modena, faced significant challenges to integrating into the labour market. Despite these obstacles, she held onto her dreams and aspirations. Things began to change for her in May 2023, when she was introduced to our program by Mercy, program graduate, and AIW ambassador.
The program started with the traditional “Who am I?” activity, where each trainee presents a dish that represents their culture, story and traditions. Juliet prepared Egusi Soup, a beloved Nigerian dish that reminded her of home. The dish, making its way onto the menu at Roots, was for Juliet, the beginning of her journey of to becoming a professional restaurant worker - bridging her roots to her new community in Modena.
Juliet presenting Egusi Soup during ‘Who am I’ activity
Our Culinary Training Program includes classes with successful chefs from Modena. These classes not only teach technical skills but also the art of preparing local dishes like pasta, bread, meat and fish. Juliet’s favourite class, however, was the meat class.
Beyond technical skills, our program also emphasizes non-technical aspects such as mentorship, reading work contracts, writing a CV and team building activities.
Juliet learned the importance of teamwork and being mindful of others - lessons that had a profound impact on her life.
We worked from the beginning to the end, there wasn’t a day that I didn’t want to come to Roots! We are strong! Three strong women!
Culinary Classes: Pasta by Marta Pulini; Bread by Michele di Gia; Fish by Ettore Surdo and Meat Class by Alessia Morabito
Juliet graduated the program on July 2023 and found a job in less than a month with the help of our partners Maximus and is currently working at Old Wild West and it is very happy that she has a job that she loves. Today, she looks back at her journey with gratitude:
“Without Roots, I imagine my life would have been very different. Finding a job before was difficult. But thanks to Roots, I found a job right after the program.”
For Juliet, like for many other migrant women, employment is the game changer that leads to financial independence, a greater feeling of integration within the community, and the opportunity to work towards a career that Juliet loves.
