The PES Network organised an online webinar and seminar on 24 June to discuss the role of public employment services in identifying and supporting structural changes in the labour market through measures such as increased anticipation, expertise and partnerships.

The event started with an open webinar session of 50 participants in the morning. The following presentations informed the discussions:

• Labour market expert, Bernard Gazier: The roles of PES in supporting structural changes.
• Spiros Protopsaltis, Governor of Greek PES OAED: How to identify and address the widespread skills mismatch in the labour market
• Klaus Eckerstorfer, from the Vienna Employment Promotion Fund: regional organisation supporting structural changes and the example of labour foundations

In the afternoon, a closed seminar of PES engaged in a deeper peer exchange of specific PES practices related to structural change. It included the following presentations:

• Anneline Teigen, NAV Rogaland, Norway: Dealing with a sudden increase in unemployment due to the oil crisis
• Janice Schmidt-Altmeyer, German Federal Employment Agency, Germany: Skills training and the Qualification Opportunities Act
• Eleni Mizaras, Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment, Finland: Using digital tools to identify labour market possibilities
• Gytis Darulis, Lithuanian PES, Lithuania: Working in cooperation with the transport and storage sector

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