Dissemination Activities - Call for Proposals

These Dissemination activities seek to complement the European-wide mutual learning activities in order to achieve the objectives of the Mutual Learning Programme. In particular, they:

• Develop partnerships or networks which pursue the identification and exchange of good practice in a transnational context, and/or
  
• Encourage mutual learning within Member States and between Member States, including all key decision makers and stakeholders of the most effective policies and practices within key areas for the European Employment Strategy, and/or
• Promote a wider and more effective dissemination of knowledge about the European Employment Strategy. and its implementation to national or European-wide stakeholders.

The European Commission supports the activities by launching calls for proposals, whereby public authorities in the Member States can apply for co-funding of projects to be conducted nationally or in co-operation with other Member States, involving a larger group of stakeholders.

The last call for proposal was published in 2010. The text of the call and other relevant documents can be found on the following link: Call for Proposals VP/2010/005 under PROGRESS Programme "Projects contributing to exchange of good practice"

Projects funded under the 2009 call:

European Confederation of Association of SMEs

‘PROJECT GE-TRANSFER 2010’

The project aimed to disseminate the concept of Employers’ Alliances (EAs) – i.e. enterprises set up jointly by several companies with the objective of recruiting employees who will work for the various member companies according to their respective needs - as a tool for enterprises and employees to balance flexibility and security. EAs are a successful form of cooperative human resources management which allows companies to retain and secure qualified personnel by cooperating between themselves, and have the potential to become important actors in the development of the local economy. The project provided some practical recommendations for policy-makers at European level on how to develop EAs in a national context, closely link with the debates on flexicurity, restructuring and the Europe 2020 strategy and taking into account the specificities of SMEs.

Contact details for project leader:

E:
W: http://www.cea-pme.org/

Czech Republic

‘FLEXI-IN-SECURITY’

The focus of this project launched in April 2010 by the Multicultural Centre Prague together with four additional partner organisations from Belgium, Germany, Poland and Sweden was on migrant workers.  The project aimed to monitor the impact of the economic crisis on their situation and analyse the legal framework regarding the protection of migrants in some Member States, disseminate information on migration and good practices in the employment of migrant workers, facilitate communication between national stakeholders and bring positive change at the policy level regarding the legal and social status of migrant workers. As part of the project an exhibition of documentary photography presenting ‘real life’ stories of migrant workers during the crisis was held in different venues across Europe in 2011. Other outcomes of the projects consisted in the preparation of a legal research and information portal and of five extensive country reports, as well as an international conference and a series of public debates.

Contact details for project leader:

E:
W: http://www.migraceonline.cz/flexi-in-security/

Germany

‘LABOUR MARKET MEASURES FOR REDUCING UNDECLARED WORK AND ILLEGAL UNEMPLOYMENT IN PRIVATE HOUSEHOLDS OF THE ELDERLY’

This project involving partners from Germany, Austria, Poland and Italy focused on the improvement of the conditions for declared employment in the area of domestic services, in order to address undeclared work in the sector. The starting point for the exchange between the project partners was the French strategy for supporting the professionalised sector for domestic services. In a mutual learning approach, the project sought to draw lessons from France while adapting it to the institutional contexts of other partner countries. The most important elements and steps of the French strategy were identified and similar instruments or measures for supporting and subsidising formal employment in partner countries were identified. Such instruments were discussed with relevant stakeholders at three regional workshops and one national workshop in each country; subsequently findings were used to formulate a Generalised Model for supporting the development of formal domestic services sector which was discussed by national and European stakeholders in a conference.

Contact details for project leader:

E:
W: http://www.iwak-frankfurt.de/domesticservices.htm

Belgium

‘IMPLEMETING COOPERATION IN AN EU NETWORK AGAINST UNDECLARED WORK (ICENUW): LEGAL ENVIRONMENT FOR FIGHTING UNDECLARED WORK AND SOCIAL FRAUD’

This project built on the conclusions from a previous inititiative already funded by the PROGRESS programme in 2006, the EU network against undeclared work, which explored the boundaries of cooperation in a European environment in the field. The 2010 ICENUW project (coordinated by the Belgian Ministry of Social security with the support of institutional actors from France, Italy and Spain)

aimed at implementing a selection of pathways to address fraud and emphasised the operational possibilities offered for labour and social inspection services. The project was informed by the work of national experts from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania and Spain.

Contact details for project leader:

E:
W: http://www.socialsecurity.fgov.be/en/conferences/icenuw/index.htm

Slovenia

‘DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES, NEW SOLUTIONS (DENS)’

This transnational project carried out across four partner countries (Slovenia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Croatia) aimed at raising awareness of the importance of achieving the goals of the European Employment Strategy, to initiate a debate about the principles that characterise the design and implementation of successful labour market approaches for dealing with the current crisis,  to strengthen the involvement of social partners and other important local actors and to create a pool of experts for the exchange of good practice in the area of increasing the labour supply and flexicurity.  Relevant key stakeholders in each country, including social partners, employment bodies, local communities, practitioners and other relevant authorities were involved. As part of the project, stakeholders’ groups and national workshops were held in the four partner countries, in addition to two transnational forums and study visits and an online forum. A number of dissemination materials were also prepared for the project.

Contact details for project leader:

E:
W: http://dens-progress.eu/