With so many learning tools now online, accessing education and training for employment can be almost impossible without a computer – an issue that became even more apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

In Austria, a project called ‘LAB – Laptops für Ausbildung und Beschäftigung’ (Laptops for Education and Employment) is tackling the problem directly, by building and distributing second-hand laptops made from discarded and broken devices. Supported by the European Social Fund (ESF), the project has already helped hundreds of people to look for work or educational opportunities, and complete online training.  

One of those people is Patrick, a 36-year-old who had been struggling to find work without a digital device. As well as giving him a laptop, the LAB team also trained him to use it. 

‘With the help of the LAB project a refurbished laptop was made available to me free of charge for the duration of my job training,’ he says. ‘Access to digital resources made finding a job much easier – especially at a time when an increasing amount of training takes place online.’   

The LAB project, developed by a non-profit communications company, offers more than just laptops. As well as having environmental benefits, due to its 'reuse and recycle' principles, the project has also created jobs for ten long-term, unemployed people.  

Thanks to LAB, Christian, 59, has been given the knowledge and skills to professionally dismantle, re-assemble and repair laptops in a socially inclusive working environment – and he loves it.  

‘The project offers me stable employment in a supportive environment,’ he explains. ‘I am continuously encouraged to acquire new skills in the digital world and am given the opportunity to express my creativity in various ways. I am also made to feel like my age is not a hindrance, but rather an advantage that the project can benefit from.’