Two PES Network online events on 24 June highlighted the important role of PES in effectively addressing structural changes in the labour market. In particular, they can add value through measures aimed at: identifying upcoming changes; meeting new skills requirements; and mitigating the impact of mass redundancies.

© shutterstock / Juanjo Tugores

Discussions suggested that PES can usefully broaden their scope of action to include further preventive as well as pro-active measures targeting both companies and workers.

Experience shows that intensive cooperation with individual companies or interventions for specific sectors are critical success factors for dealing with structural changes, especially when confronted with mass redundancies. Key measures at this stage include career guidance and training of workers.

Participants also reminded that specific approaches are needed by PES for supporting SMEs – whose cumulative impact on the labour market can be underestimated.

Furthermore, specific groups with an already vulnerable position on the labour market also require special attention, including through efforts to improve recognition of sometimes informal qualifications.

The exchanges confirmed that PES can gain significant value from engaging in continuous cooperation with other actors to provide for timely responses to major labour market changes.

Large and small companies, unions, employer organisations and sector organisation are all key partners. This reinforced messages that emerged from the recent PES Network discussions on effective Partnership Management.

Finally, participants reiterated the point that COVID-19 has only made structural changes of the labour market an area of ever more urgent concern for PES. Dealing with such major structural changes also requires a re-organisation in PES and the work of PES staff, which will need to be carefully planned, managed and supported by guidance.

These were the conclusions of a day of events which started with an open session in the morning gathering Bernard Gazier, labour market expert, Spiros Protopsaltis, Governor of Greek PES OAED and Klaus Eckerstorfer, from the Vienna Employment Promotion Fund and followed up in the afternoon with a session restricted to PES for peer exchange on specific PES practices from Norway, Germany, Finland and Lithuania.

Find out more on the conclusions of these events by reading the new Thematic paper on the roles of PES in supporting structural changes.