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World Lebanese Cultural Union
of Sydney Incorporated

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Local Australian’s Employment Initiative | Creating a Global Impact

By Chantelle Farah

The severity of Lebanon’s economic and financial crisis, coupled with the pandemic and Beirut’s Port explosion, has left countless of Lebanese unemployed.

Australian-born Lebanese, Michleen runs a marketing agency, Click Click Marketing that services global tech-giants across the Asia Pacific. She has witnessed the intensifying effects of Lebanon’s unemployment on her village, Hakel El Azime.

“I come from a village filled with educated graduates, yet it holds a close-to-zero employment rate. Their poor living standards compared to their high education is a typical paradox in Lebanon,” Michleen said.

Inspired by the concept of Jobs for Lebanon – a platform enabling the Lebanese diaspora to hire local talent – Michleen decided to employ candidates from her village.
Within the two weeks of commencement, Michleen had hired and trained 12 Lebanese to carry out various roles to service her business. Employing sales, marketing, graphic design, IT and administrative roles, news quickly spread throughout the village and she became inundated with job requests.
“I couldn’t keep up with the amount of employment applications, so I reached out to other Australian-Lebanese businesses to see if they were interested.

“It has been overwhelming to see so many Australian-based companies jump onboard this initiative,” Michleen said.

Today, Michleen employs over 35 Lebanese natives, along with a plethora of additional candidates employed by other Australian businesses. An impressive result for a movement that only commenced a year ago.

According to the World Economic Forum, Lebanese are ranked amongst the most educated people in the world. With many companies outsourcing services, skill-hiring from an educated pool of candidates in Lebanon can be a viable option. Michleen and her partnered companies have all noticed higher productivity rates, greater access to resources, dedicated staff and saved on the burdening financial commitments that employment hire brings.

“Their work ethic is amazing. These candidates look for ways to outperform as they are so grateful for the opportunities we have given them,” Michleen says.

“Witnessing their growth and gratitude is the most rewarding feeling. I just hope to reach out to more Australian businesses and encourage them to consider this resourcing option,” she added.

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