Employ women only
The artists from kokoi are characterized by excellent craftsmanship and all have difficult living conditions behind them, such as fleeing war and violence.
However, there are two basic requirements to be employed as a kokoi artisan: the gender must be female and the age should be within a range where employment opportunities are limited.
experience rather than age
"You're already too old for this job": This is a common feedback our craftsmen heard before they came to kokoi. But with us we rely on experience instead of age as a criterion.
If we worked with younger artisans, the process would no doubt be smoother in many ways. They would probably find it easier to communicate, as older craftsmen often have trouble learning foreign languages and their hands would be naturally more agile, allowing them to work faster.
Also, younger artisans likely received more formal training, while kokoi's artisans learned primarily through life experience.
However, we work primarily with our artisans as we believe they need our support the most. We believe in the valuable experiences these women have gained in their home countries and in their remarkable work abilities.
They simply need a "nudge" to reintegrate into society, and that's where kokoi comes in to support them.
working conditions of artisans
FAMILY COMMITMENTS
For refugee women, one of the biggest challenges when looking for work is finding a job that allows them to balance family responsibilities with professional commitments. Although they have impressive manual skills, they are often relegated to low-paying cleaning jobs.
FULL FLEXIBILITY
We offer our artisans complete flexibility in terms of working hours. They can choose to work full-time or part-time, and their schedules are fully customizable to accommodate their other commitments.
FAIR SALARY
To ensure that they are adequately remunerated for their work, we pay them significantly more than the statutory minimum wage.
