INOU Strategic Plan 2025-2029
At the September meeting of the National Executive Committee / Board of Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed (INOU), the organisation’s Strategic Plan for the years 2025 until 2029 was finalised and adopted. This article gives a brief overview of its contents; the full document is available on the Publications section of the INOU’s website here.
Over the period 2025 to 2029 the INOU’s overarching aims are to:
- Work with and on behalf of unemployed people and those vulnerable in the labour market in order to bring about an improvement in their circumstances.
- Build synergies within our organisation and develop collaboration with other organisations in order to progress our aims and objectives.
- Ensure that work plans reflect the Strategic Plan and are properly implemented to provide high-quality supports and services to unemployed people.
- Continue to ensure the viability and financial sustainability of the organisation.
Under this Strategic Plan the organisation’s seven Key Objectives are:
- Develop and deepen engagement with unemployed people, increase their involvement in the INOU, document their views and experiences of employment and unemployment including the digital divide.
- Develop and deliver quality services to people who are unemployed or vulnerable in the labour market and the organisations which support them and provide services to them.
- Inform and seek to influence policy, practice and public opinion on issues relating to unemployment and the labour market.
- Engage with employers on issues relating to employment, recruitment, retention and unemployment.
- Actively collaborate with organisations on issues that impact people who are unemployed or vulnerable in the labour market.
- Develop a communications strategy to generate awareness of the context, work and impact of the work we undertake.
- Secure the longer-term viability of the organisation.
Among the key actions that the INOU will undertake are:
- Seek to grow individual membership and participation through more innovative ways including through contact with unemployed people via welfare rights information, focus groups and training.
- Develop and resource our role as a niche training provider to both organisations and individuals.
- Maintain and develop our role as a key welfare rights and advocacy service provider to unemployed people, other social welfare recipients and organisations working with them.
- Inform and seek to influence public policy and practice to bring about changes to employment, education and training policies so that they are better equipped to meet the needs of those most vulnerable in the contemporary labour market.
- Develop an explicit engagement with and analysis of how employment is changing, including AI developments, and the relationship between this and unemployment.
- Develop information and guidance for employers on favourable methods for the recruitment and retention of unemployed people and others vulnerable in the labour market and the supports available to do so.
- Work with our colleagues in the Trade Union movement on the promotion and realisation of decent work.
- Continue to work with colleagues in the community, voluntary, local development sectors on issues affecting unemployed people and those vulnerable in the labour market.
- Develop a publicity strategy with emphasis on social and digital media to promote awareness of the context, work and impact of our work and generate discussion of relevant issues.