WEB engleska verzija end.indd - UNDP Croatia

CHAPTER 3THE SOCIALLY EXCLUDEDIn June 2006, of the 21 people accommodated in theshelter, two-thirds had health insurance, and the samenumber received social assistance. As of 2002, the AssociationMoSt has been cooperating with a generalpractitioner in Split who performs preventive checkupsfor people who do not have health insurance.3.12.4 Access to EducationThe level of education of the homeless in Zagreb issomewhat lower than that of the general population. Inboth populations, the majority have completed secondaryschool, but for the general population this proportionis slightly over 50%, and in the case of the homelesspopulation it is approximately 37%. Every tenth homelessperson in Zagreb has no education at all. However,the low level of education is also confirmed by the factthat in both Split and Zagreb almost one fourth of thehomeless had not finished primary education.istered employment. A few users of homeless sheltersare able to find temporary low paying jobs, such ascleaning staircases and apartments, and manuallabour, which do not provide them with pension orhealth insurance, neither are they secure enough toenable them to plan their future outside the shelter.The Reception Centre for the Homeless in Split organisesre-socialisation programmes designed to helpthe homeless find useful public jobs. One such programmeincludes eight homeless people who cleanthe Youth Home several times a week and the publicbeach Bačvice over the summer, receiving remunerationfor their work.Figure 14: The Structure of the Unemployed in Zagreb,2002occasional jobs -registered16 %was imployed,left work12 %Figure13: Education level of the homeless in Zagreb,2002other14 %never employed21 %108incompleteprimaryschool16 %no school9 %primary school23 %university1 %post secondaryschool1 %other3 %secondaryschool35 %incompletesecondary school12 %3.12.5 Access to Employment andEmployment ServicesOver half of the homeless in Zagreb have beenunemployed for quite some time. Those who havenever worked are almost exclusively women. Morethan 20% of the homeless have disabilities, and 13%do not have the capacity to work. Some homelesspeople could acquire social benefits based on theiryears of service, as one-fifth have over 14 years of reg-was imployed,dismissed20 %3.12.6 Access to Transportationoccasional jobs -unregistered17 %In Split, the people who use the Reception Centre forthe Homeless have reported that it is problematic toget to the soup kitchen which is at quite a distancefrom the city centre. The cost of transportation is notsubsidized, and the price of monthly tickets is toohigh for the homeless to afford. They are only allowedstay in the soup kitchen for up to two hours, and soare forced to spend the rest of the day in town parks,bus/train stations and other public places, until theevening hours when the kitchen re-opens.There is a special problem when homeless peoplehave children accommodated in the institutionsof social welfare in another county. For example, awoman from Split who participated in the focus grouphas two children under age, who live in the Home inOsijek. She is only able to see them rarely and thesevisits are funded by the Centre for Social Welfare.