The work of the future: Ensuring lifelong learning and training of employees

On the 29th of June 2022 the EESC Labour Market Observatory (LMO) organised a remote public hearing on ”The work of the future: ensuring lifelong learning and training of employees”, to which EfVET attended. 

The session started with a welcome message and introduction from Lech Pilawski, LMO President, who stressed the need of lifelong learning to ensure people have a job, decent living standards and facing the challenges of the Green Deal, Digitisation, and other important aspects of our lives.

Cinzia Del Rio, Coordinator of the LMO Study on “The work of the future: ensuring lifelong learning and training of employees”, then gave an overview of the main aspects of the study. The study began before the COVID-19 pandemic started, which is important as the multiple changes that have happened since then may have influenced the respondents’ answers to the questionnaire. It focuses on those people who are already in the labour market with the aim of not only highlighting the importance of lifelong learning, but also to find out what the systems are in different countries and extrapolate them into good practices. 

The results obtained from the questionnaires carried out in different countries and missions showed that different systems exist from country to country and the situations vary a lot. Although there is no standardised system, and considering the rapid changes in the world, it is essential to ensure that lifelong learning and training is available to all employees – both young workers and older ones – which requires building quality training paths available to all. 

Cinzia Del Rio ended her presentation by introducing a couple recommendations the study has come up with: 1) Lifelong learning and training should be guaranteed as an individual right of workers (e.g., through legislation or by stating so in the contract); and 2) social dialogue needs to be strengthened. 

Afterwards, Alison Crabb, Head of Unit in charge of the European Skills Agenda, DG EMPL, European Commission, highlighted two other important aspects: the need for collective action and the importance of empowering individuals and engaging people into lifelong learning and training. 

The public hearing was completed with four different panel sessions:

• Panel I: Financing lifelong learning at enterprise level
• Panel II: How to guarantee equal access to lifelong learning
• Panel III: Validation of competences and skills linked to labour mobility and the role of guidance and counselling in the green and digital transitions
• Panel IV: Lifelong learning in the public sector

Each of the panel sessions was developed by different speakers who provided their experiences and perspectives, leading to enriching and interesting discussions at the end. In conclusion, the public hearing gave participants the opportunity to get a better understanding of the LMO Study on “The work of future: ensuring lifelong learning and training of employees” and to consider the situation of lifelong learning from the perspective of different sectors or actors.