Adapting to the market to preserve the jobs of disabled persons

In Domaine de la Grange au Bois, at Lagny-sur-Marne, in a house rebuilt any number of times since the Middle Ages, 130 disabled persons are employed by the ESAT (établissement ou Service d'Aide par le Travail) run since 1974 by the nonprofit organization CPRH. Their activities encompass the upkeep, conversion and creation of open spaces, horticulture, as well as product packaging and unpackaging. In these two areas, the market has declined sharply, and at least twenty-five jobs are endangered. But the CPRH managers have identified unsatisfied needs in the industrial laundry business around Lagny-sur-Marne. A redeployment opportunity that they have successfully seized, by creating a new unit meeting the best practices of the profession.

The industrial laundry will meet the latest standards in the prevention of health risks specific to the business. It will be environment friendly both indoors and outdoors. The 320 square meter premises will be airconditioned, using the energy (heat or cold) contained in the recycled air. The facilities have been designed to optimize water treatment and to guarantee the quality of the effluents discharged.

The Veolia Environnement Foundation is sharing in the costs of refurnishing the premises, as part of a project that will build up progressively in the next 4 to 5 years. Ultimately, the 25 endangered jobs will be preserved, together with those of the two monitors who accompany the disabled employees daily.