Europe

LOOKING FOR POSSIBLE ANSWERS IN EUROPE

Who can I talk to?Where can I go?Is anyone there?

EURODESKAt Cividate Camuno in Valcamonica we enquired about the European policy for Youth Employment.We were told about programme EURODESK. It is a network that provides information and help for European youth workers as part of ‘Youth in Action Programme’.

EURODESKIt has representatives in all the European countries offering free support to young people aboutworkstudy exchangevolunteering opportunities.

EURODESKErasmus Plus is one of the programmes.They are funded by the European Commission to help: active European Citizenship mobility solidarity tolerance among young Europeans.This information network works at • national• regional • and local offices throughout Europe and offers free

advice to young people who need some help getting started.

EURODESKAll the Eurodesk representatives talk to each other about opportunities available in their countries and they are put in contact with other organisations in other European countries.They help to get opportunities and funding possibilities. There is a list of some programmes and competitions funded by the European Union. They also provide links that are of interest to young people and jobseekers.

EDUCATION: «Youth on the Move»

It is a package of initiatives: to improve education and employment for

young people in Europe to reduce high youth unemployment to increase the youth employment rate.


The main aims are: To make education and training more relevant to young people’s need To encourage more of them to take advantage of EU grants to study or

train in another country To simplify the transition from education to work through

apprenticeship, stages or other work experience To raise the overall quality of all levels of education and training in EU To promote students’ mobility and trainees’ mobility To make full use of information and communication technologies To focus school curricula on creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship To empower people by developing their skills throughout the lifecycle To match labour supply and demand.


Youth on the Move website provides more information and practical links for young people looking to study, train or work abroad.It is a part of Europe 2020 strategy for inclusive growth.

EUROPE 2020 STRATEGY

The main purpose of Europe 2020 is more jobs and better lives and also to offer a sense of direction to our societies.The main EU Targets for 2020 are:o Employmento Research and Innovationo Climate change and Energyo Educationo Combating Poverty.

EUROPE 2020 STRATEGY

One of the aims of Education is:The share of early school leavers should be under 10% and at least 40% of the younger generation should have a tertiary degree.Around 50% of young people reach medium qualifications level, but this often fails to match the labour market.

EURES (EURopean employment

services) portal In Valcamonica we visited another place: The Centre of Employment in Darfo Boario Terme to find more information about policy initiatives for young people in Europe. We were informed about the existence of EURES. It provides information, advice and services for the benefit of workers and employers. It is a cooperation network between the European Commission and Public Employment Services (PES) of 28 Member States. There are more than a million visitors on the EURES portal per month.

EURES (EURopean employment

services) portal There is a scheme called “Your first EURES Job (YfEJ)” to help young people aged 18-30 to find a job in any of the 28 Member States. The scheme combines information, recruitment, matching and job placement support with financial incentives. It finances language courses, other training needs and travel expenses for young job applicants.

EU Youth Guarantee

In April 2013 EU Member States made a commitment to ensure young people’s transition into work by establishing “Youth Guarantee Schemes”, to ensure that no young people are left unemployed or inactive for longer than four months.It means that, within four months of leaving school or losing a job, young people under 25 have to find a good quality job suited to their education, or acquire skills to find a new job through apprenticeship or continued education. It improves school to work transitions and to support jobs for young people.

EU Youth Guarantee

There will be more EU Investment Funds in the years 2014-2020 for the labour market integration of young NEETs (“not in employment, education or training”), because 7.5 million young Europeans between 15 and 24 are not employed, not in education and not in training (NEETs) especially in southern Europe.

EU Youth Guarantee

The EU has also agreed to create a Youth Employment Initiative (YEI) to provide additional funding to support the implementations of the Youth Guarantee as it is considered an investment. Young people can acquire high quality work experience under safe conditions and to increase their employability. There are also guidelines to ensure that all traineeships are based on a written agreement related to: • learning objectives• mentorship• limited duration• working time• clear indication about compensation and social protection apply• what work• where• for whom• why.

EU Youth Guarantee

Young people have to move where jobs are available and they need ways to re-enter education and training allowing them to obtain good qualifications.The Youth Guarantee website explains all the actions to a wider audience and it provides information and guidance to Member States.We hope that all that is written in these European Programmes can really be translated into reality for all our young European citizens.