Agustín finished high school in 2021 in the middle of the pandemic. The following year, in addition to looking for work, he decided to enroll in the National University of Moreno to study a degree in Public Accounting. His parents, although they were able to finish high school, were not able to continue with higher education.
“At the time I went out to look for work, my dad was unemployed. I did odd jobs but I didn’t have anything fixed: from bricklaying, remisería, whatever came. It had been more than four years since he had been separated from the supermarket where he had worked as a stocker for more than 20 years. So, with the few tools I had, he told me how I should write my resume.”
Her mother had always been at home dedicated to caregiving and household chores. Neither of them knew how to advise him on his job search. “My dad helped me, he did the best he could, but I couldn’t find a job,” he laments.
The main challenges that the young population faces when finding a job have to do not only with the real lack of opportunities, but also with the scarcity of information they have regarding the world of work.
This situation is even worse if they are in vulnerable conditions. The immediate environment—family, friends, neighbors—plays a fundamental role in job decisions and in the circulation of information: how and where to look for work, what to say and how to position yourself in a job interview, what to put and what not to put on a CV.
Agustín did not waste time and while he was taking the university entrance courses, he met a professor who told him that there was a foundation that was dedicated to preparing young people like him for their first formal job. He researched what it was about and signed up to take the course.
The Empujar Foundation is a non-profit organization made up of companies, mostly Argentine SMEs, and its purpose is to provide training in soft skills for job placement and connect young people with companies. and the world of work. In this way, contribute to the improvement in the employability conditions of youth.
Agustín’s perseverance and perseverance in seeking and creating opportunities was not in vain. In December 2022, he graduated from the foundation’s course and a few months later he was called by one of the companies that belong to the NGO network to have an interview for a vacancy in the accounting area. It was something unimaginable for him until then, because it was also related to what he was studying.
“I will never forget the day of the interview, because they declared a transportation strike. I had to take two buses to go. I couldn’t miss that opportunity, so, with the help of my parents, we paid a fee so I could attend. They treated me incredibly well. That same day, Alfonso, the owner of the company, was at the factory and the human resources people told him that he had taken a taxi so as not to miss the opportunity. “They paid for me to go home,” he remembers.
After two more instances, he was selected to fill that vacancy. Agustín entered as data entry for purchase invoices and is now an account analyst. The company considers the home office on occasions of heavy rain that prevent it from leaving the neighborhood, but in addition, every day it looks for it in cars with two other co-workers from Plaza de Moreno to take it to the Rodríguez factory.
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Germán Lojk, Executive Director of the Push Foundation maintains that “accompanying first jobs involves designing comprehensive strategies that facilitate people’s transition to the formal world of work, providing them with tools, support and a positive environment to learn and grow. This approach not only benefits the employee, in this case young people like Agustín, but also the organization, by building solid foundations for sustainable performance and talent retention. When it comes to young people in situations where their close environments do not have experience in formality, this support becomes key.”
The Agustín parents were not oblivious to the daily growth of their eldest son and were infected by his initiatives. While they saw him go to the foundation to train and listened to his stories at family dinners, they also began to look for vocational training courses for themselves. Through the Municipality of Moreno, Miryam, her mother, learned to use the computer and became enthusiastic about different trainings. Diego, his father, took the electricity course and with the drive and work force that always characterized the family, he enrolled and was able to get the monotribute to start a business. Agustín’s brother, a year later, also signed up for Push and received the tools to develop professionally.
“When I received my first salary I made it available to my family, but since they did not want to accept it, I decided to take care of some fixed expenses. My little sister’s school fee is paid entirely by me and, in addition, I give an allowance to mom because she deserves everything.”he comments excitedly.
Little by little he was equipping the room in his house and he also indulges in his ‘little luxuries’: “I really like reading. And I like to buy books. It’s something that started after watching some movies that were based on books. Before consuming the movies, I read the books and I began to get hooked on the hobby of reading.”
“My next goal is to be able to buy a car so I don’t waste so much time commuting. Most days I leave home at 7 in the morning and return at 10 at night because I am in college. “I’m already in my second year.”
Sustaining work and study represents an investment for Agustín. He defines himself as a boy who really wants to grow, to continue improving himself. “There are days when I end up very tired, but I know that this is sowing my future. If I don’t do it now that I’m young, when else?”
Agustín has dreams to fulfill and without a doubt, with the strength and conviction he has, he will carry them out.
In addition to graduating and continuing to grow professionally, he wants to buy his parents a house where they love and are happiest. “It’s not that we’re not now. We have our house that is very comfortable and my dad built it entirely, but I know that they deserve to live more peacefully,” he says.
Agustín maintains that he was lucky. However, he complemented it with constancy: “If I hadn’t crossed paths with that professor, I would probably never have found out about the foundation. “It was like being in the right place at the right time.”
His conviction of wanting to get ahead and his tenacity to move forward intentionally, building his path with solid tools and learning, were key to his personal and professional development, but also inspirational for his entire family. He is the oldest and leads by example.
Source: Ambito
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
