On Thursday 12 January, Cypriot MEP Loucas Fourlas (EPP) briefed the European Parliament Employment and Social Affairs Committee (EMPL) on his report on the European Year of Skills 2023. The Commission made this proposal in October (see EUROPE 13041/20).
More than 259 amendments have already been submitted and the MEP is aiming for a vote in the EMPL Committee in May.
He hopes that 2023 will be a “real success”, especially for SMEs that are struggling to find skilled workers. The MEP wants to focus on preparation for the digital transition and ensure that this year of skills will benefit “all European citizens”.
The draft report also encourages Member States to allocate sufficient funds from the ESF+, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the Digital Europe programmes, Horizon Europe, Erasmus+ and other programmes that can support skills development.
It is also about encouraging universities “to align their curricula with the needs of the labour market in order to address labour shortages and support sustainable growth”.
For his part, socialist MEP João Albuquerque (S&D, Portuguese) insisted on Thursday on good working conditions for people coming from third countries, and asked that this European Year should not focus only on professional skills.
For the Renew Europe group, it is important to give prominence not only to senior citizens and their job retention with access to training, but also to young people who are furthest from employment, and to the outermost regions.
Frenchman Max Orville added that reducing gender inequalities and not leaving behind people without professional qualifications should also be among the objectives of this European Year.
Polish ECR MEP Elżbieta Rafalska stressed the need to focus on training for Ukrainian refugees; and Italian NI MEP Daniela Rondinelli highlighted the situation of trainees, which she said should be the subject of more ambitious initiatives during this European Year.
Link to the report: https://aeur.eu/f/4vg (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)