Social partners: the role in governance

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Social partners the role in governance and
monitoring VET systems in Europe
J.Manuel Galvin Arribas
Athens,21 July 2006
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CONTENTS

• CEDEFOP mission supporting VET community.
• Social Dialogue in LLL in Europe a brief
  chronological review of Social Partners role.
• The role social partners governing and monitoring
  VET the framework of actions for the lifelong
  development of competencies and qualifications
  (2002-2006).
• The key role of sectoral social dialogue in
  governance of social partners in VET systems.
• The current and medium term role of SP governing
  and monitoring VET some conclusions and
  proposals

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• CEDEFOP mission
• producing, exchanging and disseminating
  knowledge

• Main activities
• Detecting and selecting information sources
  dates analysing and wide dissemination to
  European community on VET.
• Promoting and carrying out researching on
  education and training .
• Stimulating approaches and joint conclusions as
  regards European challenges concerning education
  and training topics ( stakeholders, researchers,
  social partners)
• Setting up a reference point oriented to exchange
  and production of new ideas .

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• SOCIAL DIALOGUE IN LLL IN EUROPE A BRIEF
  CHRONOLOGICAL REVIEW OF SOCIAL PARTNERS ROLE (I)

Broad definition Mechanism for promoting LLL
policies for facing challenges in current global
economy and labour markets as regards of
improving employability of workers and
competitiveness of companies.

• KEY MILESTONES IN SOCIAL PARTNERS GOVERNANCE
  IN VETTHE PERIOD OF JOINT OPINIONS
• (addressed to EU Commission and Member
  States,1989)
• (1990) Basic education, initial, vocational and
  adult training.
• (1990) Transition from school to adult and
  professional life.
• (1991) The best methods for enabling the
  broadest effective
• access to training.
• (1992) Vocational Qualifications and their
  validation.
• (1993) Women ant training.
• (1994) Future actions of EU in Vet field and
  role of Social Partners.
• (1995) Contribution of VET to fight against
  unemployment.

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• SOCIAL DIALOGUE IN LLL IN EUROPE A BRIEF
  CHRONOLOGICAL REVIEW OF SOCIAL PARTNERS ROLE (II)

• KEY MILESTONES IN SOCIAL PARTNERS GOVERNANCE IN
  VET CHRONOLOY OF PERFORMANCE OF SOCIAL PARTNERS
• (PRACTICAL ACTIONS).
• (1988) COMET II.
• (1989) EUROTECTNET.
• (1990) FORCE.
• (1991) PETRA (II)---
• (1994) LEONARDO Da VINCI.
• (1998) JOINT OPINION ON DRAFT DECISION FOR
• LEONARDO DA VINCI II PROGRAMME.
• (1998) ADAPT---
• (2000). EQUAL

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• SOCIAL DIALOGUE IN LLL IN EUROPE A BRIEF
  CHRONOLOGICAL REVIEW OF SOCIAL PARTNERS ROLE (III)

• KEY MILESTONES IN SOCIAL PARTNERS GOVERNANCE
  CONTRIBUTING IN PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF
  EMPLOYMENT VET POLICIES
• (1995) Essen Employment council.
• (1997) Luxembourg process Jobs summit"
  (European employment
• strategy on Treaty of Amsterdam-,1999).
• (1998) Employment Pact
• (2000) Lisbon strategy.
• (2001) Laeken summit.
• (2002) Barcelona summit.

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• The role social partners governing and monitoring
  
• VET the contribution of the framework of
  actions for the lifelong development of
  competencies and qualifications (2002-2006).

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Evolution analysis of the practices related to
social partners participation on LLL
(2002-2005)(I).

• The four priorities
• To identify and anticipate competencies and
  qualifications needs
• To recognise and validate competencies and
  qualifications
• To inform, support and provide guidance
• To mobilise resources.

• The first follow up report (2003), four main
  types of actions
• Dissemination activities of the framework of
  actions.
• Discussion on the framework between SP and its
  inclusion on collective agreements.
• Promotion on the approach through a tripartite
  concertation.
• Follow up of one or several priorities through
  more focussed actions and projects.

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Evolution analysis of the practices related to
social partners participation on LLL
(2002-2005)(II).

• The main traces of the contents of second follow
  up report (2004) are
• More implication of social partners in tripartite
  activities as regards of design of National LLL
  policies.
• Increase of bipartite activities focussed on
  developing competences at national, sectoral and
  company levels.
• Stronger efforts of social partners in more
  countries to anticipate and identify key
  competencies.
• Continuity in reinforcing and bring up measures
  to mobilising resources for individual access to
  learning.
• More number of actions aims to the validation of
  competences, development of qualifications and
  strength links between formal and non formal
  learning.

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Evolution analysis of the practices related to
social partners participation on LLL
(2002-2005)(III).

• The main traces of the contents of third follow
  up report (2005) are
• Consolidation of the all strategy EU 25 has
  joined the initiative, emerging that nowadays LLL
  development is consider a key topic for the
  social partners strategies.
• Many activities shows consolidation of social
  partners participation in coordination, advisory
  and/or policy making bodies related to LLL
  strategies. As a result strategies on LLL has
  been included in NAEPs.
• More involvement of social partners in actions
  improving conditions for adult learning.
• Mobilising resources area is clearly a
  increasingly measure improvement of financial
  regulations on countries and new initiatives
  co-financing training are the main tools
  supported and developed by social partners.
  

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Evaluation report (March 2006) some remarks
about main trends.

• Some trends showed for developing researching
  strategies
• Framework results environment more in Vocational
  Continuous Training systems than in VET (learning
  in employment).
• Strategies and experiences are linked mostly to
  NAEPs important for further impact evaluation.
• Sectoral and companies successful experiences
  must be spread it between countries and testing
  feasibility connected to partnership with
  education and training institutions.
• Cluster on social partners involvement strategy
  is more developed in those countries with strong
  collective bargaining culture . Transferring
  experiences to East (and acceding countries) is a
  clear challenge.

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4. The key role of sectoral social dialogue in
governance of social partners in VET systems.
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4.1 The sectoral Social Dialogue sectoral
committees
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4.2 Brief overview of sectoral approach to LLL in
Europe

• CONCRETE RESULTS AT SECTORAL LEVEL
• Partnerships between VET providers and sector
  bodies.
• Sectoral collective agreements.
• Sector funds.
• Sectoral vocational training councils.
• Sector bodies offering training, advise and
  guidance.
• Sectoral qualifications.

• SOME CONSOLIDATED PRACTICES AT SECTORAL LEVEL
• Sector skills councils (UK 2002)
• Network of competencies centers (BE -Wallonia-
  1998)
• Knowledge Centers (NL 1954).
• Joint sectoral committees (ES - 2001)
• Sectoral committees (RO - 2005)

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5. The current and medium term role of social
partners governing and monitoring VET Some
conclusions and proposals
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5.1 Some conclusions related to the meaning of
Framework of actions

• The cross industry European Social partners made
  until now one of the the most important joint
  contributions in the context of Lisbon strategy
  and of Copenhagen-Maastricht process reinforcing
  LLL on the agendas at all levels.
• After many and disperses national, territorial,
  sectoral and company levels experiences social
  partners agreed identification of key areas for
  achievement on LLL providing coherence and
  targeting contents of the measures supporting
  qualification systems.
• Essential pillar initiative for setting up Work
  program of the European social partners 2003-2005
  and 2006-2008.
• Social Dialogue on LLL at core of social model in
  a more dynamic way, reinforcing role of peer
  learning as a tool for transferring experiences
  between countries.
• Made more visible the debate about validation and
  recognition of qualifications and competencies
  between social partners.
• Nowadays, is one of the most consolidated joint
  actions composed by main social partners of EU 25
  countries it open consensus and can reinforce
  mutual trust between both sides of the industry
  for establishing a wider dialogue regarding
  qualifications and skills strategies and other
  labour matters at all levels

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5. Some proposals related to key areas for SP
actions in VET

• The evaluation of framework of actions for LLL
  impact of the action.
• The need for moving more than a gear as regards
  of recognition of qualifications and non formal
  LLL ( motivating learners to learning).
• Follow up of the future role and using of
  European Qualification Framework (EQF).
• Bring up more measures and experiences for risk
  groups connecting labour market to social
  inclusion measures supported bye VET/VCT.
• Promoting partnerships between companies and
  formal educations centres (Universities).
• Sectoral approach as a bridge between national
  and European LLL systems.
• The collective bargaining as a tool for
  universalizing VET in companies.
• Innovative measures for establish permanent ways
  of financing LLL systems particularly urgent for
  SMEs.
• To raise awareness about benefits of training for
  European citizenship.
• Improving statistical tools following up SP
  involvement on VET (Regulation 1552/2005 VT
  enterprise, art 3 c- ) .

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Thanks for your kind attention!
www.cedefop.eu.int www.trainingvillage.eu http//
www.trainingvillage.gr/etv/Projects_Networks/Socia
lP/ jose-manuel.galvin_at_europa.cedefop.eu