Saica Group, an international packaging manufacturer, has partnered with return-to-work specialists, STEM Returners to launch a new 12-week employment programme, as a part of their diversity action plan. The initiative, initially based at Saica’s sites in Carrington, Manchester and Deeside, North Wales, is designed to support professionals with science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) qualifications following a career break, offering the potential for permanent employment upon completion.

The programme is open to a range of STEM professionals including engineers and technical experts. Saica will offer four placements in 2025, providing participants the opportunity to contribute their expertise in a dynamic environment.

STEM Returners will identify candidates and provide career coaching and mentoring throughout the paid placement. Research from the STEM Returners Index has found that many people face challenges faced by those returning to work after a break, including recruitment bias related to lack of recent experience, gender, age and race. The research found that 51% of respondents identified a perceived lack of recent experience as a barrier, an increase from 38%. While 26% of women reported experiencing recruitment bias based on gender compared to 8% of men. This initiative aims to eliminate these barriers by supporting candidates with real work experience during placement, whilst also improving accessibility to opportunities in Saica for underrepresented groups.

Natalie Desty, Director of STEM Returners, said “Despite a well-known skills shortage across the manufacturing industry, people on a career break are often overlooked. However, they have important skills, expertise and knowledge that will benefit any employer.

“We are very proud to be entering this new partnership with Saica to return highly skilled people back to the industry they love. Only by working together will we make vital changes in recruitment practices to help those who are finding it challenging to return to the sector and improve diversity and inclusion.”

Karen Bain, People Director for Saica Group in the UK, Ireland and Benelux, said “This programme is quite simply the right thing to do. We are committed to supporting members of the community in the areas that we operate back into work and by doing so in a supported way we will maximise the chances of success for both the individuals and for Saica, offering us an opportunity to fill roles that can be difficult to fill and improve the diversity of our workforce. We are delighted to be partnering with STEM Returners in this initiative and their expertise will be invaluable in ensuring its success.”

Saica, a global leader with a workforce of more than 12,000 employees worldwide and 8 decades of innovative practices remains committed to diversity, inclusion and sustainability. Placement applications have opened for the programme, set to start in Q1 2025.

Since its inception in 2017, STEM Returners has had more than 500 candidates join programmes across the UK. To learn more about STEM Returners’ opportunities, visit https://www.stemreturners.com/placements/.