European Commission launches the Union of Skills and reinforces the Pact for Skills

The European Union is facing significant labour and skills shortages across multiple sectors that cannot be filled by the EU workforce alone. To address this challenge, the European Commission recently launched the Union of Skills.  

Building on the Skills Agenda, the European Education Area and the European Research Area, the Union of Skills is an overarching strategy that will reinforce the goals set out for the Union in the Competitiveness Compass, the Clean Industrial Deal and the Preparedness Union Strategy.  

The Union of Skills focuses on four strands to ensure that everyone in Europe is empowered to build solid skills foundations and engage in lifelong upskilling and reskilling. The fourth strand specifically focuses on attracting, nurturing, and retaining talent to support Europe’s future innovation, sustainable growth, and competitiveness. 

Roxana Mînzatu, Executive Vice-President for Social Rights and Skills, Quality Jobs and Preparedness, highlighted the importance of helping people adapt to a changing world: “The Union of Skills is our strategy to help people stay ahead in a rapidly changing world and keep Europe competitive and fair. We, in Europe, put people first because the success of every person in learning, at work and in life is essential for competitiveness and for a stable and resilient Union.”  

The Union of Skills initiative aims to: 

• Empower people across Europe with the skills they need to thrive
• Enhance companies’ competitiveness by helping them find the talent they need
• Make skills portable for use in different EU countries. 

To achieve this, the Union of Skills will set out to: 

• Deliver higher levels of basic skills through initiatives such as the Basic Skills Support Scheme pilot programme
• Provide lifelong opportunities for adults to regularly upskill and reskill through a Skills Guarantee pilot programme, for example
• Facilitate recruitment by businesses across the EU through a Skills Portability Initiative
• Attract and retain the skills and talent needed for Europe's future through the ‘Choose Europe’ pilot action which aims to attract global talent by offering excellent career opportunities and working conditions
• Provide a strong foundation for governance. 

A reinforced Pact supports the Union of Skills 

The Union of Skills focuses on reskilling and upskilling. As part of the Union, the Commission will reinforce the Pact for Skills to help more workers gain new skills in strategic sectors. This includes improving skills intelligence, supporting initiatives such as the Large-Scale Skills Partnerships and EU Skills Academies, and streamlining programmes such as the EU Skills Academies, the European Alliance for Apprenticeships, the Centres of Vocational Excellence and European Universities alliances.  

With more than 2500 members, 20 Large-scale Skills Partnerships (LSPs), 11 Regional Skills Partnerships (RSPs), and 68 other partnerships, the Pact for Skills brings together key actors in strategic ecosystems, facilitating joint public-private action at sectorial and regional level. 

Additionally, the Pact brings a diverse range of public and private stakeholders together, providing a significant boost to skills intelligence by identifying industry-wide skills gaps and developing ways to secure and keep skilled workers. 

By fostering collaboration and sharing resources such as skills intelligence and training modules, the Pact and its LSPs aim to upskill 25 million workers by 2030. 

Interested in learning more about the Union of Skills? Check out the dedicated webpage.