Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64) : the organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision.
Date: 2015-08-25
Institutions: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
Subjects: EU employment policy, aid to disadvantaged groups, employment aid, employment policy, fight against unemployment, job access, labour market, professional qualifications, skill obsolescence, updating of skills, vocational retraining, vocational training

ISSN 1977-4478

Upskilling unemployed 

adults (aged 25 to 64):

Social Europe

The organisation, profiling  and targeting of training provisionEEPO ReviewThis publication is based on national articles provided by the EEPO 
expert  network.  National  articles  are  the  sole  responsibility  of 
the author(s). The contents of this publication do not necessarily 
reflect the position or opinion of the European Commission or ICF 
International.  Neither  the  European  Commission  nor  any  person/
organisation  acting  on  behalf  of  the  Commission  is  responsible 
for  the  use  that  might  be  made  of  any  information  contained  in 
this publication.

European Commission
Loris  di  Pietrantonio,  Federico  Pancaldi,  and  Silviu  Costache 
(Employment,  Social  Affairs  and  Inclusion  DG,  Unit  C.1:  European 
Employment Strategy and Governance)

Paul  Holdsworth,  Martina  Ní  Cheallaigh,  Mantas  Sekmokas 
(DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, Unit C.5: Vocational 
Training and Adult Education)

Belgium: Robert Plasman, DULBEA — Université de Bruxelles 
(University of Brussels)  
Brussels

Bulgaria: Pobeda Loukanova, Economic Research Institute  
Sofia

Czech Republic: Daniel Münich, CERGE-EI — Centre for Economic 
Research & Graduate Education (Charles University) — Economics 
Institute (Czech Academy of Sciences)  
Prague

Denmark: Per Kongshøj Madsen, CARMA — Centre for Labour 
Market Research, Aalborg Universitet (Aalborg University)  
Aalborg

Germany: Nicola Düll, Economix Research & Consulting  
Munich

Estonia: Reelika Leetmaa, Praxis Centre for Policy Studies  
Tallinn

Ireland: Seamus McGuiness, Economic and Social Research Institute,  
Dublin

Greece: Dimitris Karantinos, EKKE — National Centre of Social 
Research  
Athens

Spain: Elvira González Gago, CEET — Centro de Estudios 
Económicos Tomillo, SL (Tomillo Centre for Economic Studies)  
Madrid

France: Sandrine Gineste, Bernard Brunhes Consultants  
Paris

Italy: Giuseppe Ciccarone, Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini (Giacomo 
Brodolini Foundation)  
Rome

Cyprus: Louis N. Christofides, University of Cyprus  
Nicosia

Latvia: Alfreds Vanags, BICEPS — Baltic International Centre for 
Economic Policy Studies  
Riga

Lithuania: Boguslavas Gruževskis and Inga Blaziene, Institute of 
Labour and Social Research  
Vilnius

Luxembourg: Patrick Thill, CEPS/INSTEAD — Centre d’Etudes de 
Populations, de Pauvreté et de Politiques Socio-Economiques (Centre 
for the Study of Population, Poverty and Socioeconomic Policy)/
International Network for Studies in Technology, Environment, 
Alternatives, Development  
Differdange

Croatia: Zdenko Babić, Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb  
Zagreb

Hungary: Zsombor Cseres-Gergely, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia 
KRTK, Közgazdaságtudományi Intézet (Institute of Economics, Centre 
for Economic and Regional Studies of the Hungarian Academy 
of Sciences)  
Budapest 

Malta: Manwel Debono, Centre for Labour Studies, L-Università ta’ 
Malta (University of Malta)  
Msida

Netherlands: Sonja Bekker, ReflecT Institute, Universiteit van 
Tilburg (University of Tilburg)  
Tilburg

Austria: Lechner, Reiter und Riesenfelder Sozialforschung OG  
Vienna

Poland: Łukasz Sienkiewicz, Szkoła Główna Handlowa 
w Warszawie (Warsaw School of Economics)  
Warsaw

Portugal: Reinhard Naumann, DINÂMIA — Centro de Estudos 
sobre a Mudança Socioeconómica (Research Centre on 
Socioeconomic Change)  
Lisbon

Romania: Cătălin Ghinăraru, National Labour Research Institute  
Bucharest

Slovenia: Miroljub Ignjatović, Fakulteta za druzbene vede, Univerza 
v Ljubljani (Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana)  
Ljubljana

Slovakia: Luboš Vagač, Centrum pre hospodársky rozvoj (Centre 
for Economic Development)  
Bratislava

Finland: Robert Arnkil, Työelämän tutkimuskeskus Tampereen 
yliopisto (Work Research Centre, Tampere University)  
Helsinki

Sweden: Dominique Anxo, CELMS HB — Centre for European 
Labour Market Studies HB  
Gothenburg

United Kingdom: Kenneth Walsh, TERN — Training & 
Employment Research Network  
Kidderminster

Iceland: Sveinn Agnarsson, Viðskiptafræðideild, Háskóli Íslands 
School of Business, University of Iceland  
Reykjavik

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia: Nikica Mojsoska-
Blazevski, School of Business Administration, University American 
College Skopje  
Skopje

Turkey: Hakan Ercan, Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi (Department 
of Economics, Middle East Technical University)  
Ankara

Serbia: Mihail Arandarenko, FREN — Fond za razvoj ekonomske 
nauke (Foundation for the Advancement of Economics)  
Belgrade

Norway: Sissel C. Trygstad, Fafo Institutt for arbeidslivs- og 
velferdsforskning (Fafo Institute of Labour and Social Research)  
Oslo

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About the EEPO
This  report  was  produced  by  the  European  Employment  Policy 
Observatory (EEPO). The EEPO is a European network, which publishes 
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European Employment Policy Observatory Review
Upskilling unemployed  
adults (aged 25 to 64): 
The organisation, profiling  
and targeting of training provision

European Commission  
Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion  
Unit C.1

Manuscript completed in June 2015

Neither the European Commission nor any person/organisation acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible 
for the use that might be made of any information contained in this publication.

The links in this publication were correct at the time the manuscript was completed.

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ISBN 978-92-79-48346-2 – doi:10.2767/409552 (online)

ISSN 1977-4478

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Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

List of abbreviations 

aES 
Afpa  

ANQEP 
AVETAE 
BAMF 
BTEA  
CES 
CfWL 
CIE  
CNQ 
COCOF 
CPAS 
CSR 
CVT  
DIISP 

DLO 
ECDL 
EEPO 
ERDF 
ETC 
IAG 
IAP 
ICT 
ISCED 
Isfol 
JSSP 
LFS 
LLE 
LMP 
LTU 
NFQ 
NIACE  
NVAEO 
NVQ 
OISP 
OPCA 
PES 
PMTIC  
POEC 
POEI 
RIS 
SEA 
SEV 
TES  
UIF 
VET 
VLTU 

Adult Education Survey
 National Association for Adult Vocational Training – Association nationale pour la forma-
tion professionnelle des adultes 
National Agency for Qualification and Professional Education
Agency for Vocational Education and Training and Adult Education
Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge
Back to Education Allowance 
Croatian Employment Service 
Competences for working life
Contrat d’initiation à l’emploi  
National Qualifications Catalogue
Commission Communautaire Française
Public social assistance centres
Country-specific recommendations
Continuous VET
 Integrated Measure for Socio-professional Integration – Dispositif Intégré d’ Insertion 
Socioprofessionnelle 
Department of labour offices
European Computer Driving Licence
European Employment Policy Observatory
European Regional Development Fund
Employment and Training Corporation, Malta
Information, advice and guidance
Individual action plan
Information and communication technologies
International Standard Classification of Education 
National Institute for Educational and Vocational Training
Jobseekers Support Programme
Labour Force Survey
local labour exchange
Labour Market Programme
long-term unemployed
National Framework of Qualification
National Institute of Adult Continuing Education
National Vocational and Adult Education Office
National Vocational Qualifications
Socio-professional Integration Bodies – Organismes d’Insertion Socioprofessionnelle 
Organisme paritaire collecteur agréé 
Public employment service
ICT Mobilising Plan – Plan Mobilisateur TIC  
Preparation Operationelle pour l’Emploi Collective
Preparation Operationelle pour l’Emploi Individuel
Social integration income – revenu d’intégration sociale 
State Employment Agency 
Hellenic Federation of Enterprises 
Training for employment subsystem  – subsistema de formación para el empleo
Unemployment Insurance Fund
Vocational education and training 
Very long-term unemployed

3

Key policy messages

This review presents an in-depth analysis of funded 
training provision across Member States aimed at 
raising the skills of adult unemployed persons (25-
64) with low levels of qualifications or inadequate 
basic skills. The review describes the funding, the 
institutions  responsible  for  governance  and  the 
implementation of training programmes. It maps 
and provides detailed information of the set-up of 
training interventions and measures provided to 
unemployed adults throughout the 33 EEPO coun-
tries. The review also explores lessons from com-
parative analysis, drawing on evaluation findings, 
highlighting effective design features and considers 
the role of the European Structural Fund (ESF) in 
supporting training for unemployed adults. Finally, it 
outlines the challenges training programmes need to 
overcome and presents a set of recommendations.

Review conclusions:

•  Although  training  measures  are  essentially 
compensatory  interventions,  they  have  the 
potential  to  support  labour  market  effi-
ciency and are an appropriate response to 
structural unemployment.

• 

In a climate of increased unemployment, train-
ing courses need an appropriate mix of generic 
and vocational skills, and should target low 
skilled and long-term unemployed adults.

•  Training measures with more positive evalua-
tion results tend to be well tailored to the job-
seeker’s potential; meet (local) employers’ skills 
need; lead to formal vocational qualifications; 
are smaller in scale; and target specific disad-
vantaged groups and particular occupations.

•  Vocational training has significant positive 
effects for jobseekers with low levels of edu-
cational attainment.

•  Individualised approaches are key to effec-

tive training.

•  Self-selection  approaches  (allowing  indi-
viduals to choose their training path) appear 

to work better, than decisions solely made by 
PES caseworkers.

•  Decentralised training provision, delivered 
by a wide range of education providers, includ-
ing non-profit organisations, enhances opportu-
nities for tailored provision and practical training 
orientated towards labour market needs.

•  Integrated  approaches and institutional 
cooperation are important for those groups 
who  face  multiple  employment  barriers,  in 
which information and guidance play a cen-
tral role.

•  Schemes which provide experience that is as 
close as possible to working life tend to be 
more effective.

•  Employer involvement is important and the 
most successful schemes combine institutional 
training with practical training, mirroring a real 
job and workplace environment.

•  Training  providers  not  only  help  learners  to 
develop knowledge, skills and competences and 
to gain working experience, but also work at the 
interface between learners and employers, and 
often function as labour market intermediaries, 
so this intermediary function of training 
providers should be supported.

•  The system of individual action plans pro-
vides a useful mechanism for focusing inter-
ventions most effectively and speeding up the 
activation process.

•  Guidance  and  follow-up  for  leavers  from 
training, especially for those considered dis-
tant from the labour market and facing multiple 
employment barriers, is needed, with a view to 
keeping them on a lifelong learning pathway.

•  Targeted learning opportunities for unem-
ployed people can have a positive impact on 
improving progress towards the EU benchmark 
of 15 % adult participation in learning.

4

Table of contents

1. 

Introduction 

1.1. 

1.2. 

Scope of the review 

European policy context 
1.2.1. 
1.2.2. 

Training in the European semester 
The participation of low-skilled unemployed in training 

2. 

Governance of training  

2.1. 

2.2. 

Funding amounts and sources 
2.1.1. 

Funding sources 

The roles of institutions in governance and delivery of training 
2.2.1. 
2.2.2. 
2.2.3. 

National policy frameworks and priorities 
The role of national ministries and public bodies in governance 
Delivery models 

3. 

 Mapping of the programmes and measures available to upskill  
and reskill unemployed adults 

3.1. 

3.2. 

3.3. 

Content of training 
3.1.1. 
3.1.2. 
3.1.3. 
3.1.4. 

Different provision is designed to meet different objectives 
Menu-driven approaches to training 
Practical character of training 
Vocational training to address competition for jobs 

Duration of training 
3.2.1. 

Length of training makes a difference 

Targeting of training 
General offer 
3.3.1. 
Use of inclusion criteria to support targeting 
3.3.2. 

3.4. 

Training provision for specific target groups 

4. 

Lessons from comparative analysis  

4.1. 

4.2. 

4.3. 

4.4. 

Strengths and weaknesses of different approaches 
4.1.1. 
4.1.2. 
4.1.3. 

Approaches for directing unemployed people to the ‘right’  training 
Making training relevant to the labour market 
Employer-based approaches 

Evaluation findings 
4.2.1. 
4.2.2. 

What are the outcomes of the training 
Overview of evaluation results 

Effective design features 
Integrated ALMP 
4.3.1. 
Profiling 
4.3.2. 
Individual action planning and follow-up 
4.3.3. 
Maximising the benefits of self-selection by workers/individuals 
4.3.4. 
Validation of prior learning 
4.3.5. 
Certification of training 
4.3.6. 
Sectorally oriented provision 
4.3.7. 

The role of the ESF 
4.4.1. 

 The ESF has greatly increased the diversity of target groups,  
the range of provision and of training providers 

7

7

7
7
8

11

11
12

13
13
13
14

19

20
20
20
21
21

22
22

23
24
25

25

29

29
29
31
33

36
36
36

44
44
45
45
46
46
47
48

50

51

5

5. 

Challenges  

5.1. 

Coordination between policy areas 

5.2.  Matching unemployed people to training 

5.3. 

5.4. 

5.5. 

5.6. 

5.7. 

5.8. 

Resourcing 

Low uptake of training by low-skilled unemployed 
5.4.1. 
5.4.2. 
5.4.3. 
5.4.4. 

Low propensity of low skilled to participate in training 
Incentives to train or sanctions for non-participation 
Cultural factors 
Logistical factors 

Issues related to public procurement rules 

Evaluation challenges 
5.6.1. 
5.6.2. 
5.6.3. 
5.6.4. 

Problems of establishing the counterfactual 
Difficulty in separating out the effects of different measures 
Effectiveness influenced by exogenous factors 
Need for longitudinal element due to timescales involved 

Uneven geographical coverage 

Skills forecasting 
5.8.1. 

Need to establish effective mechanisms for skills forecasting 

6. 

Conclusions and recommendations  

6.1. 

6.2. 

Conclusions 

Policy lessons 

53

53

53

54

54
55
55
55
56

56

56
56
56
57
57

57

58
58

59

59

60

6

1.  Introduction

Adult training (1) aims to provide compensatory 
learning in basic skills which individuals may not 
have acquired earlier in their initial education or 
training (such as literacy, numeracy); it aims to 
give access to qualifications not gained, for vari-
ous reasons, in the initial education and training 
system or to acquire, improve or update knowl-
edge, skills or competences in a specific field: this 
is continuing education and training. The main 
challenge that adult training needs to address is 
helping adults, and especially unemployed adults, 
to adequately adapt to changes in the labour mar-
ket due to demographics, globalisation, economic 
conditions and technological advancements, and 
to do this throughout their working life.

In order to improve the provision of training for 
adults at risk, it is necessary to better understand 
how training and learning opportunities for unem-
ployed people are designed and delivered in dif-
ferent Member States, as well as the impacts of 
these different approaches. Furthermore, while 
the overall state of the economy is an important 
factor in determining changes in the levels and 
flows to and from long-term unemployment, it is 
also important to assess the role played by train-
ing provision in affecting these flows.

This  review  performs  an  in-depth  analysis  of 
funded training provision for unemployed adults, 
aged 25 to 64, with a specific focus on programmes 
targeted at returning them to employment, and 
raising basic skills or the skills of individuals with 
low levels of educational qualification.

A brief reminder of terminology is warranted, as 
outlined in Cedefop’s Terminology of European 
Education and Training Policy glossary (Cedefop, 
2009a):

Formal learning is learning that occurs in an 
organised and structured environment (e.g. in an 
education or training institution or on the job) 
and is explicitly designated as learning (in terms 
of objectives, time or resources). Formal learning 
is intentional from the learner’s point of view. It 
typically leads to validation and certification.

Informal  learning  is  learning  resulting  from 
daily  activities  related  to  work,  family  or  lei-
sure. It is not organised or structured in terms 
of objectives, time or learning support. Informal 

(1) 

 Adapted from Cedefop 2009a.

learning is in most cases unintentional from the 
learner’s perspective. 

Non-formal learning is learning which is embed-
ded in planned activities not explicitly designated 
as learning (in terms of learning objectives, learn-
ing time or learning support). Non-formal learning 
is intentional from the learner’s point of view. In 
some countries, the entire sector of adult learning 
falls under non-formal learning; in others, most 
adult learning is formal.

1.1.  Scope of the review

Drawing mainly on information contained in coun-
try articles prepared by experts in the 33 coun-
tries covered by the European Employment Policy 
Observatory  (EEPO),  this  review  describes  the 
funding, responsible institutions for governance 
and the implementation of training programmes. 
It further provides a mapping and detailed infor-
mation  of  the  set-up  of  training  interventions 
or  measures  provided  to  unemployed  adults 
throughout the 33 EEPO countries. The review also 
explores lessons to be drawn from comparative 
analysis, drawing on evaluation findings, high-
lighting effective design features and considers 
the role of the European Structural Fund (ESF) 
in  supporting  training  for  unemployed  adults. 
Finally,  it  outlines  the  challenges  still  encoun-
tered by training programmes and presents a set 
of recommendations.

1.2.  European policy context

1.2.1. 

Training in the European 
semester

Lifelong  learning,  including  vocational  educa-
tion and training (VET) and adult learning have 
been  the  object  of  recommendations  in  the 
context of the European semester (2). Between 
2011 and 2014, country-specific recommenda-
tions (CSRs) promoting the development of voca-
tional and adult learning in the wider context of 
developing a skilled workforce were issued for 

(2) 

 The European Semester is the annual cycle of economic 
and employment policy coordination at the European 
level. During each European Semester, the European 
Commission analyses the fiscal and structural reform 
policies of every Member State, provides Country 
Specific Recommendations (CSRs), and monitors their 
implementation.

7

Eurostat  data  show  that  from  2008  to  2013, 
EU-27 unemployment rates generally appeared 
to be levelling out; the same could be said for 
older workers, for women and, to some extent, for 
young people. However, rates for people with low 
educational qualifications (ISCED 0-2) continued 
to rise, reaching almost 20 %.

There were around 25 million unemployed adults 
aged  25-64  in  the  EU  in  2011  (Labour  Force 
Survey — LFS). Of those, around 10 million were 
low-qualified (ISCED 0-2), 11 million had medium 
qualifications (ISCED 3-4) and around 4 million 
had a high qualification (ISCED 5-6). Low-skilled 
unemployed people are over-represented among 
the long-term unemployed, many of whom work 
in declining occupations and sectors.

Furthermore, the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) 
(EC DG EAC, 2013b), highlights that:

•  20 % of the EU working age population has low 

literacy and numeracy skills;

•  25 % of adults lack the skills to effectively 

make use of ICTs;

• 

the high-skilled are progressing well through 
adult  learning,  but  people  with  low  profi-
ciency are easily caught in a ‘low skills trap’ 
as they are less likely to participate in learn-
ing activities;

•  education and skills increase employability: 
this represents a challenge for the one in four 
unemployed who has low literacy and numer-
acy skills.

Low-skilled workers are more likely to be 
unemployed

The chart below shows that to a greater or lesser 
extent, lower skilled adults face higher unem-
ployment rates than the average in all countries 
covered by EEPO. However, Slovakia and Poland 
are two of the countries with the lowest share of 
adults who have not completed upper second-
ary education.

10 Member States (Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, 
Estonia, Spain, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, 
and Slovakia). Most of these CSRs date back to 
2011 and have built on one another in subsequent 
years. A total of 15 CSRs relating to vocational 
education and training have been issued since 
2011, covering various aspects of the education 
and training offer, such as work-based learning, 
skills mismatch issues, and lifelong learning. As 
such, they have some crossover with CSRs that 
focus on early school leaving, public employment 
services, youth and higher education.

In both Belgium and Cyprus, recommendations for 
reforms have focused on providing more opportu-
nities for work-based learning. The development 
of lifelong learning has been the focus of rec-
ommendations and reforms in Malta and Poland. 
A  number  of  East  European  Member  States 
(Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary and Slovakia) have 
been encouraged to improve the labour market 
relevance of their respective education and train-
ing systems through improving the quality of the 
educational content.

faced 

challenges 

outstanding 

by 
The 
Member  States  in  this  policy  area  are  in  fact 
closely linked to challenges in other policy areas, 
such as the development of educational systems 
to prevent early school leaving and the modernisa-
tion of public employment services (PES). Overall, 
developments suggest that Member States are 
responding well to one of the most critical objec-
tives of the Europe 2020 strategy. Through a vari-
ety of reforms, important steps have been taken in 
the Member States to improve the labour market 
relevance of education and to create stronger 
links between educational systems and the world 
of work.

1.2.2. 

The participation of low-skilled 
unemployed in training

Low-skilled  adults  are  more  likely  to  be 
unemployed, less likely to take part in train-
ing  and  are  over-represented  among  the 
group of long-term unemployed.

8

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionFigure 1.1 Adult unemployment rate (%), by educational level, 2014

Unemployment rate (%) of those aged 25 to 64, by educational level, 2014

All educational levels (ISCED 2011)
Primary and lower secondary education (ISCED levels 0-2)

45

40

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

K
S

L
P

S
E

M
O
R
Y
f

T
L

L
E

G
B

R
H

V
L

Z
C

Y
C

E
I

I

8S
2
-
U
E

T
P

U
H

T
I

T
M

E
B

R
F

E
S

I

EF
D

E
E

T
A

K
T

K
U

K
D

U
L

O
R

L
N

S

I

O
N

Participation  in  lifelong  learning/continu-
ing training is likely to be lower for the low 
skilled, while the employed are more likely 
to access non-formal learning than unem-
ployed people

activities compared to unemployed people (45 % 
compared to 23 % respectively). Moreover, the 
access rate in non-formal training is fifteen times 
that in formal training (38 % as opposed to 2.4 %), 
with strong variations across countries.

The PIAAC study (EC, DG EAC 2013a), shows that 
usually learning during adulthood was found to be 
undertaken by young adults and highly educated 
individuals as opposed to older adults or adults 
with lower skills. Furthermore, there is divergence 
between participation in education and training by 
age group. Less than 6 % of all 55-64 year olds 
participated in education and training in 2013, 
compared  to  nearly  17 %  of  25-34  year  olds. 
PIAAC also found that people who are employed 
were more likely to access non-formal learning 

As illustrated in the chart below, in 2014, for the 
EU-28, just 4.4 % of adults with low qualifica-
tion levels (ISCED 0-2) participated in education 
and training, compared to 10.7 % of all adults. 
This would seem to indicate that those who need 
education and training most in order to return to 
employment have the least chance of getting it. 
This is a particular problem for those unemployed 
people whose lack of basic literacy or numeracy 
skills prevents them from accessing more job-
specific training.

Figure 1.2 Adult participation rate (%) in education and training, by educational attainment 
level, 2014)

Participation rate (%) of adults (aged 25 to 64) in education and training (last 4 weeks), by educational attainment level, 2013 

All educational levels (ISCED 1997)
Primary and lower secondary education (levels 0-2)

45

40

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

K
D

E
S

S

I

I

OF
N

R
F

L
N

K
U

T
A

U
L

I

S

E
E

8
2
-
U
E

S
E

T
P

Z
C

T
I

E
D

E
B

T
M

Y
C

E
I

V
L

T
L

K
T

L
P

U
H

L
E

K
S

R
H

G
B

O
R

M
O
R
Y
f

Source: Eurostat, trng_lfse_03. 

9

Participation of unemployed people in training: 
is training for unemployed adults sufficient?

Based  on  statistical  data  from  the  Adult 
Education Survey (AES), the figure below illus-
trates  participation  in  non-formal  education 
and training by unemployed and inactive people 
(the data are not disaggregated for the long-
term unemployed (LTU) and the very long-term 
unemployed (VLTU)). The chart is based on data 
for  2011,  the  latest  year  for  which  data  are 
available, and shows that in the best of cases 
(Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg and Denmark), 

less than half of unemployed people participated 
in non-formal education and training that year, 
while at the other end of the spectrum, less than 
20 % of unemployed people participated in ten 
countries (Latvia, Hungary, UK, Slovakia, Poland, 
Lithuania, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia). 
It emerges that training for unemployed adults 
is probably not sufficient, at least in some coun-
tries such as Lithuania, Greece, and Bulgaria, 
where small proportions of unemployed people 
take part in training despite these countries fac-
ing some of the highest unemployment rates for 
low-skilled adults in the EU.

Figure 1.3 Participation rate in non-formal E & T by labour status, (2011 data)

Participation rate in non-formal education and training by labour status

Unemployed

Inactive

Employed

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

O
N

E
S

U
L

K
D

L
N

T
A

R
F

E
E

T
M

S
E

I

EF
D

I

S

T
P

8
2
-
U
E

Z
C

Y
C

E
B

T
I

V
L

U
H

K
U

K
S

L
P

T
L

L
E

S
R

O
R

G
B

Source: Eurostat, [trng_aes_103]. 
NB: A blank value indicates that data were unavailable for this group. Data not available for this year for Croatia, Ireland and Turkey. 

10

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision2.  Governance of training 

This chapter describes the context, the govern-
ance system of training provision for unemployed 
people, and the framework in which interventions 
are set. It describes the amounts and sources of 

funding, the institutions responsible for govern-
ance and implementation of training, as well as 
the selection and control of the main providers 
of training. 

Key findings
•  There is a trend away from central state control and towards decentralisation.

• 

Institutions responsible for providing training to unemployed adults include national training 
bodies, PES, education and vocational institutions, private training companies, employers, 
voluntary and community organisations and social partners.

•  Social partner responsibility in training unemployed people is increasing in some Member States.

• 

In the majority of countries, more than one body shares the responsibility for the manage-
ment and implementation of training for unemployed people but there is room to improve 
coordination between bodies. 

2.1.  Funding amounts 
and sources

The two charts that follow illustrate the amount 
that each country invests in training, as a per-
centage of GDP and amounts spent by training 
participant, respectively. Four countries (Finland, 

Denmark, Austria, and Ireland) had the highest 
proportions  of  spending  on  training  in  2011, 
at  0.4 %  of  GDP  or  more.  In  terms  of  highest 
spending  per  participant,  the  Nordic  countries 
(Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway), together 
with  Greece  and  Luxembourg  spent  over  EUR 
15 000 per training participant.

Figure 2.1 Total spending on training LMPs (as % of GDP)

Total spending on training LMPs (% GDP), in 2003, 2007, 2011

2003

2007

2011

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0

I

KF
D

T
A

E
I

R
F

T
P

E
D

8
2
-
U
E

S
E

O
N

E
B

T
I

V
L

L
N

E
E

E
S

I

S

Y
C

U
L

T
M

U
H

T
L

G
B

Z
C

L
P

O
R

K
S

L
E

K
U

Source: Eurostat, lmp_expsumm.
NB: A blank value indicates that data were unavailable for this year. 

Expenditure on labour market policies (LMP) is 
limited to public interventions which are explicitly 
targeted at groups of persons with difficulties in 

the labour market: unemployed people, employed 
people at risk of involuntary job loss and inactive 
persons who would like to enter the labour market.

11

Figure 2.2 Average spending per LMP training participant

Average spending (EUR) per training participant (all ages)

2008

2010

2012

O
N

L
E

E
S

I

UF
L

R
F

T
A

K
D

E
I

T
P

E
D

L
P

E
E

T
L

S
E

E
B

I

VS
L

L
N

T
I

K
S

Y
C

U
H

T
M

O
R

G
B

Z
C

K
U

30000

25000

20000

15000

10000

5000

0

8
2
-
U
E

Source: Eurostat, lmp_expsumm and lmp_partsumm.
NB:  A blank value indicates that data were unavailable for this year. 

2.1.1. 

Funding sources

The table below summarises the institutions with budgetary responsibility and some of the sources 
of funding for training in different countries.

Table 2.1 Key budgetary responsibility and sources

Type of institution 

Ministry for Employment
Ministry for Education 
Other central government (e.g. Ministry 
of Economy)
PES
Regional and local authorities 
Employee & employer insurance 
contributions / Social partner training funds
Unemployment Insurance Fund 
European Social Fund

Country 

BG, DE, IT, AT, UK, NO
BG, DE, IT, fYROM
CZ, DK, FR, CY, HU, SI, SK, SE

DE, ES, FR, NL, PL, SI
BE, DK, DE, ES, FR, NL, SI
IE (Jobs Fund), ES (worker contributions), LT (Employment Fund), LU (Employment 
Fund), HU (National Employment Fund), PL (Employers’ Labour Fund)
EE, AT, RO, IS
A key role in: BG, CZ, EL, IT, CY, LT, HU, PL, RO

A role in: BE, DK, DE, EE, ES, FR, IE, AT, PT, SE, SI, SK 

Source: Main sources of funding as outlined in the EEPO review country articles 

In  a  number  of  countries,  funds  are  dis-
tributed at the level of national ministries. 
In Austria, the UK and Norway, the Ministry for 
Employment has prime responsibility, whereas in 
Germany the Ministry of Education and Research 
plays a role. In Italy and Bulgaria, both minis-
tries are involved, reflecting the different strands 
of adult education in the country. France has a 
multi-level structure involving different sources 
of funding. In 2012, 366 141 training courses 
were financed by regions, 144 175 by Pôle Emploi 
(the PES) and 52 944 by the state. Some training 
actions are still managed and partly financed by 
the state or by the European Social Fund (ESF).

Regional  and  local  authorities  are  also 
important  sources  of  funding  in  Belgium 
and  Denmark.  In  Belgium,  the  organisation 
of training is a community power (3), except in 
the French-speaking area where the Wallonia-
Brussels  Federation  has  transferred  its  power 
over vocational training to the Walloon Region 
and  to  the  French  Community  Commission 
(Commission  Communautaire  Française  — 
COCOF). The regions and communities are also 

(3) 

 The top level of the Belgian state is made up of the 
Federal State, the Communities and the Regions. The 
Communities are based on language: i.e. the Flemish, 
French and German-speaking communities.

12

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionsupported in their training efforts by the European 
Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the ESF. In 
Denmark, the cost of active measures is financed 
jointly by the national government and the munici-
palities, which collect their own local taxes. There 
is a complex scheme of reimbursement by the 
state of the various costs borne by the munici-
palities for different kinds of benefits and costs 
of active programmes. In general, the govern-
ment reimburses 50 % of the costs of education 
and training.

of the individual and raising skills levels to at 
least ISCED Level 2. The government’s reshap-
ing of funding for training has meant a reduc-
tion in adult training and a switch to ensuring 
that as many people as possible acquire Level 
2 qualifications. This has inevitably meant that 
more resources have been switched to raising 
the achievements of youth, especially in the light 
of high levels of unemployment among young 
people — levels that in the UK, are more persis-
tent than among adults.

The ESF is noted as an important source of 
funding in some countries, potentially creat-
ing an implicit central budget deficit for those 
years when ESF funding will not be available (see 
Section 4.5 for more details on the role of the ESF 
in supporting training

Social partner training funds and employee/
employer insurance contributions feature. 
For example, in Ireland, following the change in 
government  in  March  2011,  the  new  govern-
ment launched the Jobs Fund, which is financed 
by  a  0.6 %  levy  on  private  pension  funds  and 
is  designed  to  raise  EUR  1.88  billion  over  a 
4-year period.

2.2.  The roles of institutions 

in governance and delivery 
of training

2.2.1.  National policy frameworks 

and priorities

The  priorities  and  key  target  groups  of 
national  policies  for  training  unemployed 
people vary widely, and few countries focus 
explicitly on low-skilled, unemployed peo-
ple. Priorities for training unemployed peo-
ple range from an emphasis on certification 
(France),  through  increasing  skills  levels 
(United  Kingdom)  to  a  recently  enhanced 
focus  on  the  low  skilled  (Denmark  and 
Spain).

In France, the national policy framework is very 
much structured by the last two training reforms 
(2009 and 2014). The last reform put in place the 
personal account for training (Compte Personnel 
Formation CPF). More recent reforms have tended 
to  emphasise  the  notion  of  ‘certification’  of 
training actions, which contributes to increased 
employability for unemployed people.

The UK Work Programme started in 2011 with 
the aim of being an all-encompassing support 
framework  for  unemployed  people,  with  the 
emphasis on customising activities to the needs 

In many countries, training for unemployed 
people  is  part  of  more  general  employ-
ment frameworks. For example, the rules for 
granting public support for unemployed people 
in Poland are set by the Act on the Promotion 
of Employment and Labour Market Institutions. 
In Bulgaria, the training of unemployed adults 
is one of the main actions for implementation 
of the upgraded employment strategy 2013-
2020. In Romania, the current Unemployment 
Insurance  Act  adopted  in  2002  provides  for 
training of unemployed people, as one of the 
main  services  to  support  their  labour  market 
reintegration. In Iceland, as unemployment has 
traditionally been very low, the need for active 
labour market measures has in the past not been 
regarded as very pressing. However, that has 
changed as a result of the economic recession, 
when unemployment increased. Consequently, 
employment  measures  were  developed  that 
included training provision. Turkey did not have 
a formal national employment policy framework 
until 2014, when it published its first national 
employment policy.

In  other  cases,  training  for  unemployed 
people  is  linked  more  closely  to  educa-
tion policies (e.g. Croatia, Greece, Malta). 
For example, Finland’s Government Programme 
(2011–2015) focuses on addressing existing edu-
cational inequalities.

2.2.2. 

The role of national ministries 
and public bodies in governance

As  might  be  expected,  national  employ-
ment bodies often have a role in strategic 
governance  and  oversight  of  training  for 
unemployed people (e.g. in Cyprus, Hungary, 
Portugal), but in many cases more than one 
body shares responsibility for training. For 
example, in both Italy and Portugal, vocational 
training  comes  under  the  Ministry  of  Labour 
(which sets the minimum service and regulation 
levels and provides most of the funding), while 
adult  education  comes  under  the  Ministry  of 
Education (responsible for the programming and 
structure of the system).

13

As already indicated in the literature (Cedefop, 
2013), national policies tend to remain too frag-
mented  in  their  approaches,  with  insufficient 
crossovers  and  joint  policy  thinking  between 
the  relevant  ministries  and  national  institu-
tions  responsible  for  employment  policy  and 
education and training. A number of examples 
are highlighted in the EEPO country articles: in 
Hungary,  the  framework  of  training  provision 
for jobseekers is prepared  chiefly in  the min-
istry  responsible  for  employment  policy  mat-
ters, currently the Ministry of National Economy 
(MNE),  but  the  Ministry  of  Interior  (planning, 
coordinating and supervising public works) and 
the Ministry of Human Capacities (coordinating 
vocational rehabilitation of unemployed people 
with  disabilities)  also  play  a  role.  The  MNE  is 
also responsible for the creation of a strategic 
framework for employment policy, operational 
programmes,  associated  action  plans  and  for 
projects  too.  In  Ireland,  the  responsibility  for 
training  initiatives  rests  with  a  number  of 
organisations  and  departments,  including  the 
Department  of  Social  Protection  (JobBridge, 
Back to Education Allowance), the Department 
of  Education  and  Skills  (Springboard),  the 
Further  Education  and  Training  Authority 
(SOLAS)  (responsible  for  Momentum)  and  the 
Education  and  Training  Boards  (what  used  to 
be  FÁS  training  centres  have  become  part  of 
the  Education  and  Training  Boards  after  FÁS 
was disbanded).

In a move towards improved coordination, the 
recent (March 2015) reform of Spain’s training 
for employment subsystem (TES — subsistema 
de formación para el empleo) aims to increase 
the effectiveness of the system and improve its 
quality; to situate it in a less intricate juridical 
framework and promote more strategic multi-
annual  planning;  to  link  training  content  with 
labour market needs; to increase the diversifi-
cation of courses and training providers; and to 
implement a sound monitoring and evaluation 
system. Although the move has come late, the 
economic crisis has been taken as an opportunity 
to implement deep changes in the way training 
for employment is provided in the country.

In  some  countries  there  is  a  trend  away 
from  central  state  control  and  towards 
decentralisation.  In  France,  the  state  main-
tains an overall supervisory role of the national 
training system for unemployed people, but gov-
ernance is increasingly at the regional level. In 
Poland,  the  characteristic  feature  of  the  PES 
organisation  is  a  high  level  of  local  author-
ity  self-governance  and  independence,  which 
results in a decentralised model of governance, 
implementation, selection and control of major 
providers of training.

2.2.3.  Delivery models

Different national approaches to provid-
ing  training  for  unskilled  adults  largely 
depend on each country’s wider policy con-
text  and  national  priorities  (encompass-
ing the concern to promote adult learning, the 
priority  given  to  linking  ALMP  to  social  and 
economic  development  issues,  or  the  nature 
and priority given to addressing any structural 
issues  facing  the  labour  market  in  different 
countries). In some countries (such as Denmark, 
Italy,  Romania),  unemployed  adults  are  tar-
geted  by  laws  establishing  the  right  to  con-
tinued learning for employed and unemployed 
people,  although  the  importance  of  the  legal 
framework underpinning the provision appears 
to  vary  across  the  Member States.  The  cat-
egories of provision which appeared from the 
Member States’  reports  can  be  summarised 
into four broad groups of provision:

•  PES-organised provision: the PES organ-
isation  directly  provides  or  uses  train-
ing  from  existing  supply  for  unemployed 
adults, primarily aimed at upgrading exist-
ing  knowledge  or  developing  new  skills  to 
raise employability. In Estonia, for example, 
labour market training is a form of institu-
tional  training,  meaning  that  most  of  the 
training time is spent in a training institution 
(labour market training includes initial voca-
tional training, skills conversion and adap-
tation  training,  entrepreneurship  training, 
computer  skills  training  and  professional 
language skills training).

•  Provision  within  the  education  and 
training  frameworks:  the  PES  direct 
unemployed  people  to  places  in  the  exist-
ing education and training system, or fund 
courses which the unemployed person or a 
caseworker identifies as meeting their needs 
(subject  to  criteria).  In  Finland,  for  exam-
ple,  unemployed  people  aged  over  25  are 
mostly  served  through  competence-based 
adult VET and liberal adult education insti-
tutes.  The  training  is  state  subsidised  and 
the money is allocated via municipalities. In 
Iceland, the Directorate of Labour relies on 
various education providers, including both 
the state-run education system, i.e. upper-
secondary schools and universities, as well 
as providers within the Icelandic adult edu-
cation system. These programmes/courses 
are not specifically designed for unemployed 
individuals,  but  provide  a  selection  from 
which they can choose.

•  Specially  commissioned  provision:  the 
local  PES  offices  organise  training  from  a 

14

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionrange  of  external  providers  (which  is  spe-
cially  developed  through  a  commissioning 
process rather than procured from the exist-
ing supply). In Hungary, for example, there 
are three main types of providers: vocational 
school-based training (in the case of certified 
vocational education); regionally integrated 
training  centres;  for-profit  and  non-profit 
providers of certified, accredited or general 
training (Observatory and TKKI, 2013).

•  Partnership  arrangements: 

in  some 
Member States  partnerships have involved 
the employment offices and actors such as 
local authorities, foundations and associa-
tions, trade unions and employer organisa-
tions  in  the  provision  of  specific  services, 
including  training  for  unemployed  people 
(including long-term unemployed), as well as 
for other groups of individuals in unemploy-
ment that were previously harder to reach 
or out of reach for the employment services. 
In  Belgium’s  Wallonia,  Socio-professional 
Integration Bodies (Organismes d’Insertion 
Socioprofessionnelle — OISP) provide train-
ing  for  adult  learners  to  encourage  the 

development  of  general  skills.  They  form 
part  of  the  Integrated  Measure  for  Socio-
professional  Integration  (Dispositif  Intégré 
d’Insertion  Socioprofessionnelle  —  DIISP), 
which  aims  to  coordinate  public  and  pri-
vate training providers. To obtain approval, 
an OISP must sign a partnership agreement 
with Forem, the public employment and train-
ing service in Wallonia. There are 90 OISPs 
approved  in  Wallonia,  which  can  be  either 
non-profit undertakings or public social assis-
tance centres (CPAS).

The  balance  of  provision  varies  between 
Member States. As an example, in Sweden during 
the period 2008-2011, a state-owned educational 
provider was responsible for about 30 % of total 
training; around 60 % of the labour market train-
ing courses were provided by private companies; 
while municipalities, folk high schools and uni-
versities were in charge of the remaining 10 % 
(Swedish Agency for Public Management, 2012).

The strengths and challenges emerging from 
the different arrangements are considered in 
the table below. 

Table 2.2 Review of different delivery approaches

Approach
PES delivered provision 

Provision within ‘mainstream’ 
education and training frameworks

Commissioned provision (usually 
locally organised provision)

Partnership arrangements 

Strengths
Integrated to PES services, link to job 
search
Wider range of options available, 
including accredited courses

Link to other interventions, e.g. job 
placement
Opportunity for flexibility in provision

Tailored to needs of groups /
individuals

Could link to the national frameworks 
of accredited qualifications

Link to other interventions e.g. job 
placement

Individualised approaches are 
evaluated highly
Means of tapping expertise and 
resources

Challenges

Focus on short employability 
measures
Quality tends to rely on the framework 
of (accredited) providers, which might 
be lacking.

Information on training programmes 
not sufficiently promoted to 
jobseekers, who often learn about 
training activities only by accident

The planning of relevant scope of 
training at the local level does not 
always follow standardised criteria 
(Borik and Caban, 2013).

Flexibility of provision may depend on 
procurement regulations 
Requires strong coordination efforts

Usually depends on external funds

The institutions responsible for providing training 
to unemployed people include a wide variety of 
national and regional training bodies, local author-
ity agencies, the PES, social partners, private adult 
training providers, individual employers, as well as 
voluntary and community organisations, while usu-
ally training is provided by a mix of organisations. 

For example, in Spain, provision is in the hands 
of accredited training centres since the reform of 
2015. This has substantially diminished the weight 
of social agents, both trade unions and employ-
ers associations (eliminating their de facto former 
monopoly). In addition to accredited private training 
centres, training provision included in programmes 

15

aimed at improving the employability of long-term 
unemployed are also developed by NGOs special-
ised in the assistance of specific collectives.

The institutions responsible for the management 
and implementation of training are listed in the 
table below.

Table 2.3 Institutions responsible for management and implementation of training

Type of institution

Country

National training bodies

PES

BG, DK, DE, EL, HR, LV, LU, HU, PT, UK, fYROM

BE, BG, CZ, DE, ES, FR, HR, CY, LT, LU, HU, MT, NL, AT, PL, PT, 
RO, SK, FI, SE, UK, TR, RS 

Regional and local public authorities

BE, DK, IE, ES, FR, IT, LU, NL, FI, NO

Social partners

BG, DK, CY, LU, HU, IS

National training bodies play the key role in the man-
agement and implementation of training for unem-
ployed people in several countries. For example, in 
the UK, the National Institute of Adult Continuing 
Education (NIACE) researches the provision of train-
ing for unemployed adults to identify practices that 
are both effective for learners and helpful in sup-
porting providers.

the Employment Service (CES) and the Agency for 
Vocational Education and Training and Adult Education 
(AVETAE) work together: the CES provides training for 
employment and professional rehabilitation, and the 
AVETAE is responsible for monitoring vocational and 
adult education, approving new vocational and adult 
education programmes and licensing new vocational 
and adult education institutions.

Quality assurance bodies include:

• 

• 

In  Greece,  the  National  Organisation  for  the 
Certification of Qualifications and Career Guidance 
(EOPPEP) licenses lifelong learning centres and is 
responsible for developing and implementing a 
comprehensive national system for the accredi-
tation  of  non-formal  education  and  informal 
learning, lifelong learning service providers, occu-
pational profiles, programmes, and adult educa-
tors’ competences.

In Portugal, the National Agency for Qualification 
and Professional Education (ANQEP) is responsi-
ble for coordinating the professional training and 
education offer (including quality control), manag-
ing the Recognition, Validation and Certification of 
Competences (RVCC) process, for competences 
acquired during working life, and the orientation 
of its beneficiaries to the adequate education and 
training offers that complete their certified compe-
tences) and the National Qualifications Catalogue 
(CNQ), plus other qualitative aspects of vocational 
education and training (VET).

The PES also plays a key role, either in the 
quality assurance of training (e.g. DE, ES, UK) 
or  by  being  the  main  body  responsible  for 
management and implementation of training  
(e.g. BE, FR, NL, AT etc.). For example, in Austria, for 
each qualification and training programme, a federal 
guideline is provided by the federal PES office. The 
guideline defines the target groups, the administra-
tive procedures, and how to calculate benefits for 
training participants. The PES offices in the nine prov-
inces are responsible for implementation, taking into 
account regional labour market conditions. In Croatia, 

Regional and local public authorities are often 
important actors.

• 

• 

• 

In Ireland, a major overhaul of the administra-
tion and delivery of many upskilling programmes 
took place during 2014, when the Education and 
Training Boards took over responsibility for the 
management of training delivery.

In the Netherlands, reintegration activities are 
decentralised to a large extent to labour market 
regions and municipalities. PES and municipali-
ties cooperate within the framework of 35 labour 
market regions, covering the whole country.

In Finland, the 15 regional centres for economic 
development, transport and the environment (ELY 
centres) steer and supervise the activities of the 
employment and economic development offices 
(TE offices). The ELY centres are also responsible 
for the managing and tendering of labour mar-
ket policy (LMP) measures, including competence 
development services (career counselling, prepar-
atory training, work experimentation, education 
and wage subsidy). Also, in the recent ongoing 
‘municipality experiment’, the participating (61) 
municipalities are responsible for long-term adult 
unemployment issues and for organising reha-
bilitation, training and employment pathways on 
their own account.

Social partners are playing an increasingly sig-
nificant role in some countries:

• 

In Denmark, the social partners have a strategic 
role: they are represented on the new structure 
of eight regional employment councils, and play a 

16

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionrole in preparing the national list specifying which 
training courses unemployed people can follow 
(with the Ministry of Employment and Ministry 
of Education).

• 

In Cyprus, new 2-year training initiatives (PSIVET) 
are integrated with social partners through an 
Advisory  Board  and  a  Programme  Council 
(though not specifically designed to train unem-
ployed people, this provision caters for individuals 
who would otherwise have been unemployed).

The  social  partner  role  supporting  training  for 
unemployed people in close cooperation with the 

PES, is illustrated in the examples from Lithuania 
and Austria below.

In  Lithuania,  the  most  significant  practice  of 
training for unemployed adults has been chosen 
as an example reflecting cooperation between 
PES and social partners that ensures successful 
training-to-work transition, creates conditions 
for ongoing improvement and actualisation of 
training contents in accordance with changes in 
real jobs, and provides more opportunities for 
trainees to undergo traineeships close to real 
jobs (possibly, in the company of the potential 
employer).

CASE STUDY
Gas and electric cutter and welder of metal training programme (4), Lithuania

Short description: Formal continuing VET training programme; range of occupations acces-
sible — the holder may weld simple constructions, and various items and parts manually and 
by applying arc and oxyacetylene welding; the holder may also perform arc and oxyacetylene 
cutting of parts from steel with a low carbon concentration; ISCED 2.

Target group: Non-qualified youth and unemployed people with metal processing qualification 
(lower-secondary level of education completed).

Number of participants: 32 unemployed people per year (2014). In September 2014, a 
cooperation agreement was signed between Vilnius local labour exchange (LLE) and Linpra, the 
Engineering Industries Association of Lithuania. In 2014, the organisation employed 17 jobseek-
ers registered with the local labour exchange and signed 17 trilateral vocational training and 
employment agreements.

Duration of programme: 13 weeks.

Total budget: EUR 64 160 (approximately EUR 48 120 or 75 % from the ESF).

Qualification delivered: Gas and electric cutter and welder of metal.

Actors involved in the provision of training and their role: The LLE signed a cooperation 
agreement with the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists, which has Linpra among its 
members. During annual employer surveys on the need for skills, the LLE revises and updates 
the demand for welders and, where such demand is high in individual companies, signs annual 
agreements with the relevant companies. These oblige the LLE to train the necessary number 
of welders, and the company to admit trained unemployed persons to work. Representatives 
from the companies which are parties to the cooperation agreement are often invited to 
the commissions for final assessment. Representatives of metal-processing industries often 
agree to provide their production premises for practical training under this vocational train-
ing programme.

Summary of evaluation findings: Implementation of this programme involves wide-ranging 
and active cooperation between the LLE and the social partners. This creates preconditions 
for: a) frequent trilateral training and employment agreements which, in turn, ensure very high 
post-training employment rates (up to 100 %); b) regular actualisation of training programmes 
in accordance with the needs of employers; c) ensuring high-quality practical skills. 

The example of labour foundations in Austria is 
also highlighted below in view of the extensive 

(4) 

 For further details, see the Lithuania EEPO review 
country article and the LLE activity report, 2014, 
available at  
http://www.ldb.lt/Informacija/Veikla/Documents/
LDB_2014 %20metu %20ataskaita_web.pdf, page 7, 
and http://www.vjdrmc.lt/suvirintoju-kursai.html

evaluation evidence available, with very positive 
results (particularly re-employment rates). This 
has been important as a measure focusing on 
upskilling for people newly unemployed from 
declining sectors and is an example of good coop-
eration and governance in the design and imple-
mentation of training for unemployed adults.

17

CASE STUDY
Labour Foundations (5), Austria

Short description: Labour foundations are a form of institutional training. In general, they are created 
through the initiative of the social partners at company or regional level, for two main reasons. First, 
if one large company – or several companies in a certain sector or region – is in economic difficulties 
and mass lay-offs seem inevitable (outplacement type). Secondly, if there is a great need for certain 
skills, inplacement foundations offer upskilling programmes to unemployed workers, followed by job 
entry once the programme is completed, while they also offer appropriately trained workers to meet 
employers’ special skills bottlenecks. Another option is target group foundations which are launched 
by collective bargaining entities of employers and employees (Austrian Economic Chamber and 
Austrian Trade Union Federation) to address specific economic difficulties of different target groups. 
For example, the Inplacement Foundation 45+ in the Province of Styria, aims to cover vacancies of 
Styrian enterprises through workplace training of unemployed people aged 45 years and over. To 
reach the objectives, several instruments are implemented, where qualification measures form the 
core. The concrete basis for qualification measures is an individual training plan, based on a profound 
assessment and orientation. The plan is signed by all parties (participant, foundation management, and 
future employer, where applicable) and must be approved by the PES. Participation in the measures 
agreed in the plan is mandatory.

In summary, labour foundations programmes are a highly developed measure. They are cost-intensive, 
but effective. Compared to other measures of the ALMP, they can hold companies accountable for 
labour market policy, too, and thus relieve public budgets. The instrument is based on the principle 
of partnership, as the establishment of a foundation follows an agreement between the social 
partners. Foundations aim to formally upgrade qualifications or support workers in re-qualification 
efforts. The instrument supports individually tailored measures, including those of longer duration 
(such as university study). So participants can get the qualification for occupations in demand (e.g. 
white-collar jobs) or gain a higher educational attainment. The re-employment rates are evidence of 
the success of this instrument.

Target group: Registered unemployed whose jobs have become redundant due to restructuring or 
economic difficulties. Most participants are low or medium-skilled.

Number of participants: The total number of participants increased especially in 2009 (+ 38 per-
centage points compared to 2008) and has remained stable at about 12 000 persons since 2011.

Duration of training: Most participants choose training of relatively long duration: the average 
duration in 2012 was 523 days, i.e. 17 months. Around 49 % of participants stayed in a foundation 
for a period of 1-3 years, and 7 % for more than 3 years.

Funding source: The costs are covered by the PES (Arbeitsmarktservice Österreich).

Types of skills (or qualification if relevant) delivered: The participation in a wide range of 
qualification/training measures is possible — from upskilling of existing knowledge, to apprenticeship 
examinations or participation in qualifications of longer duration (schools, colleges or university studies).

Summary of evaluation findings: Several evaluation studies have been carried out in recent 
years. One main indicator is the re-employment rate of former participants. Results show very posi-
tive effects. According to the evaluation evidence, directly after completion of a foundation 44 % of 
participants are employed (excluding marginal part time, apprenticeships, subsidised employment); 
3 months later the rate is about 60 %; and 1 year after completion, the re-employment rate has 
risen to 75 %. Other measures do not reach this high reintegration rate. For example: for training 
measures, the re-employment rate 1 year after is around one-third; in socio-economic enterprises 
the figure is around 20 %. 

For example, in Spain, provision of adult training is 
in the hands of four stakeholders: employers and 
workers’ representatives, third-sector organisations 
and private training providers (which have to be 
specifically authorised or accredited by the regional 
employment  services).  Worker  and  employers’ 

(5) 

 For further details, please see the Austria EEPO review 
country article.

representatives  play  a  major  role  as  training 
providers. The labour market reform establishes 
that accredited training providers may participate 
directly in the design and provision of training pro-
grammes, something which had exclusively been in 
the hands of workers and employers’ representa-
tives. With this measure, the de facto monopoly 
of trade unions and employers has been broken. 

18

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision3.  Mapping of the programmes 

and measures available to upskill 
and reskill unemployed adults

This chapter will map the key LMP measures/inter-
ventions through which the training opportunities 
(programmes) are provided to unemployed adults 

throughout  the  33  EEPO  countries.  The  chapter 
explores the extent to which training provision is tar-
geted at the needs of more disadvantaged groups. 

Key policy messages

Vocational training for unemployed people is important to combat the mismatch 
between labour demand and supply:

•  The content of training for unemployed adults can include (further) vocational training, employ-
ability support, ‘second chance’ education, basic skills for the disadvantaged and employer-
specific provision.

•  Most Member States have some local/regional input into the design of training.

•  Practical training is important since it helps reduce the gap between what is learned and 

what is needed for a job.

Relatively few national policies focus explicitly on training for low-skilled unemployed 
adults. Priorities for training unemployed people range from an emphasis on certifi-
cation (FR), through increasing skills levels (UK) to a recently enhanced focus on the 
low skilled (DK and ES). Broadly, training programmes for this group comprise those 
targeting all unemployed and targeted provision for specific groups.

•  There is often overlap in the target groups for training measures, with some individuals facing 

multiple disadvantage (low-skilled, LTU, older workers etc.).

•  When measures specifically target the low-skilled unemployed, their focus is more often 
about increasing the level of skills or the level of qualifications of the targeted persons and 
less often about return to employment. Measures typically focus on enhancing basic skills or 
increasing levels of qualification. 

The chart below outlines the key approaches fol-
lowed. A key distinction is whether there is poten-
tial for measures to increase the level of skills in 
general, their level of basic skills or the level of 

qualification of unemployed people, or whether 
they focus primarily on training for return to work. 
The table below summarises the key features of the 
two approaches, albeit by making generalisations.  

Figure 3.1 Mapping of training for unemployed low-skilled adults

FOCUS: Return to employment

FOCUS: Raising basic skills or
Raising level of qualiﬁcation

Upskilling, work-ﬁrst approaches

Reskilling, train-ﬁrst approaches

DURATION: Longer-duration training

DURATION: Shorter-duration training

MAIN TARGET GROUPS:
LTU, older workers, women returners

CONTENT:
Employability training, non-formal 
vocational and educational 
training (VET), training to ﬁll speciﬁc 
vacancy, employer-based training

MAIN TARGET GROUPS:
Low skilled, migrants (and young people)

CONTENT:
Basic skills, key competences, 
completion of general education, 
Initial VET and Continuing VET 
with recognised qualiﬁcations

KEY TOOLS:
Proﬁling, Individual Action Planning
Monitoring and evaluation

Skills forecasting
Matching training to employer needs

Recognition of prior learning
Certiﬁcation

19

3.1.  Content of training

3.1.1.  Different provision is designed 

to meet different objectives

When thinking about the content of training for 
unemployed adults, it is probably useful to dis-
tinguish between:

•  further vocational training (which includes 
measures by which vocational knowledge and 
skills are assessed, maintained and extended 
or  adapted  to  technical  developments).  In 
Germany, the provision is mainly vocationally 
oriented and the length of the measures var-
ies greatly, depending on whether or not the 
training leads to a recognised and certified 
occupation (550 days on average vs 114 days) 
(Bundesagentur für Arbeit, 2013b). In some 
cases training is provided as a complement 
to other active labour market policies (ALMP) 
(e.g.  re-employment  bonus,  measures  to 
integrate disabled workers); for example, in 
Luxembourg  ALMP  can  be  accompanied  by 
training schemes, which are flexible and often 
tailor-made, if required

•  special provision for unemployed people 
to enhance employability (i.e. designed to 
provide the range of knowledge and skills con-
sidered most likely to maximise the chances of 
unemployed people in the labour market). In 
the UK, most training options for unemployed 
people are from menu-driven systems, such 
as the Work Programme (in Great Britain) and 
Steps to Work (in Northern Ireland). In these, 
the emphasis is on preparing the client through 
job-ready  skills,  including  basic  skills  (with 
information and communication technologies 
(ICT) now recognised as a basic skill) and voca-
tional skills, though normally to a low level 
(Level 2) (reflecting the government’s priority 
to have as many people as possible with Level 
2 qualifications)

•  ‘second chance’ education (i.e. reflecting 
the established curricula and publicly recog-
nised certification), and particularly suitable 
for those lacking previous qualifications. The 
provision may be linked to the prevailing edu-
cation frameworks. In Germany, a new pro-
gramme was set in 2013 for 25-34-year-olds 
without a formal vocational qualification, to 
engage them in dual VET (full-time, part-time, 
or within a modularised scheme)

•  provision  of  basic  skills  for  disadvan-
taged groups of workers, often as a pre-
requisite  for  other  types  of  training  and 
education (e.g. literacy and numeracy skills, 
language skills). In Ireland, there are a num-
ber of part-time programmes provided by the 
vocational education committees that can be 
accessed by jobseekers, but the initiatives are 
not specific to them (Community Education; 
Adult Literacy; Intensive Tuition in Adult Basic 
Education (ITABE) and English for Speakers of 
Other Languages (ESOL))

•  employer-specific provision designed to 
maximise the person’s chances of filling 
a  vacancy  or  receiving  a  job  offer; for 
example,  the  employer-based  ‘profession-
alisation contracts’ in France or on-the-job 
training in Slovenia.

Some Member States take a broad definition of 
training. Estonia includes ‘coaching for working 
life’ in its provision of training interventions (as 
well as labour market training and work prac-
tice). The coaching for working life provision is 
targeted mostly at the long-term unemployed 
(while labour market training and work prac-
tice are targeted at all registered unemployed 
and certain disadvantaged employees) and is 
more of a transition service for entry to other 
ALMP measures.

3.1.2.  Menu-driven approaches 

to training

Many countries have menu-driven approaches to 
training. For example, in Italy, the content and the 
duration of training programmes are particularly 
varied, depending on regional or sub-regional pro-
gramming strategies (course duration varies from 
20 to 800 hours, on the basis of final learning 
outcomes; meanwhile the content may be voca-
tional, strongly specialised or focused on basic 
skills). The same applies to training integrated in 
employment pathways, whose content and dura-
tion will depend on the initial individual profiling 
carried out by PES or equivalent operators.

Particularly interesting is the training activity 
operated  under  the  ‘re-employment  endow-
ment’  scheme  implemented  in  the  Lombardy 
and Veneto regions (Isfol, 2014), where train-
ing  is  integrated  with  other  employment-ori-
ented services and is generally very short and 
highly specialised.

20

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionCASE STUDY

Re-employment and Re-qualification Endowment programme (2011-2012)

Country: Italy (Lombardy Region)

Short description: The ‘endowment system’ (Sistema Dotale) is used to finance and deliver 
all the employment and training-oriented interventions following a personalised/individual-
ised model. More specifically, unemployed people are engaged by re-employment instruments 
implemented through defining a Personalised Action Plan which may alternatively include: a) 
an integrated employment pathway (where short duration professional training is focused on 
meeting companies’ existing needs); b) a self-employment pathway where training is mainly 
based on managerial and technical skills for business-start-up.

Duration: 180 days maximum after recipients register their curriculum vitae 

Types of skills (or qualification if relevant) delivered: professional and specific skills 
depending on expected employment; self-employment, managerial, process skills

Summary of evaluation findings: 12 months after intervention, 35 % of the recipients were 
employed; in total, the new employed or those who had succeeded in getting a different job 
made up 16-17 % after 6 months. The figure was 4 percentage points lower for women than 
for men, and 6 percentage points lower for older people than for young ones. Six months after 
intervention, the probability that a recipient had experienced a positive change (was employed, 
in the case of those initially unemployed) was 15 %, while the opposite probability (becoming 
or remaining unemployed) was 40 %; this final figure was higher for women and among the 
over-50s, and was lower for those with a higher educational qualification. 

3.1.3. 

Practical character of training

Literature (De Rick and De Cuyper, 2014) finds 
that the most crucial element is the practi-
cal nature of the training: first, this reduces 
the gap between what is learned during the 
training and what is needed for the job, and 
secondly  it  reduces  the  chances  that  the 
jobseekers look for jobs not linked to the 
training provided. An internship during the train-
ing also makes a difference, because it improves 
not only the effects of the training, but also the 
job-search process. In Luxembourg, CIE and CAE 
contracts, as well as tailor-made training pro-
grammes, are identified as particularly important 
in the reactivation and upskilling of vulnerable 
jobseekers, as they combine practical and theo-
retical training under the supervision of a tutor 
and are centred on a law-based training plan.

In some Member States, such as Ireland, it seems 
that a shift is currently underway from more insti-
tutionally based provision towards more skills-
specific approaches, which give greater emphasis 
to the practical elements. The ESRI evaluation of 
what used to be FÁS specific skills training (before 
FÁS was disbanded) demonstrated substantial 
benefits from high and medium skills training; 
the majority of FÁS courses were categorised as 
general or low skilled and had a limited impact 
on jobseekers’ chances of exiting unemployment. 
While there was a strong emphasis on providing 
job-specific skills within more newly developed 
training programmes aimed at upskilling unem-
ployed adults, serious questions remained with 

regard to the skills content of legacy initiatives 
that account for by far the greatest portion of 
total spending in the area (6).

3.1.4.  Vocational training to address 
competition for jobs

Vocational training measures are a particularly 
important tool for combating unemployment in 
areas  with  a  particularly  high  unemployment 
rate,  where  the  current  situation  of  structural 
unemployment  indicates  that  labour  supply 
is  higher  than  labour  demand.  This  mismatch 
increases competition between jobseekers, with 
the low skilled being particularly badly affected. 
It  is  mainly  to  combat  this  situation  that  the 
use of vocational training has increased mark-
edly in some instances, for example in parts of 
Belgium. The public authorities tend to adopt a 
‘job-analysis’ approach (Agulhon, 2010; Bruyère 
and Lemistre, 2010) to vocational training and 
its  relationship  to  employment.  This  approach 
assumes that specific training delivers a number 
of specialised skills needed for a very specific 
job.  In  this  respect,  the  public  authorities  are 
pushing jobseekers to acquire those skills. The 
exemption measures for jobseekers who pursue 

(6) 

 With regard to the BTEA, despite having an annual 
budget of almost EUR 200 million, the limited 
evaluation evidence that does exist indicates that 
BTEA support has no positive impact on a participant’s 
chances of gaining employment, which raises serious 
questions with regard to the skills content of the 
programmes undertaken by jobseekers in receipt of 
this benefit. 

21

training and the identification of critical jobs by 
regional employment services are a good example 
of this. Various assessment reports either confirm 
or reject the validity of this type of approach.

range of job-oriented issues, such as practical, the-
oretical and basic managerial skills linked to local 
labour market needs and opportunities.

Some  provision  is  designed  to  meet  broader 
national priorities. The Walloon Government’s ICT 
Mobilising Plan (Plan Mobilisateur TIC — PMTIC) 
was introduced in 2002 and aims to raise aware-
ness of the new ICT among jobseekers, recipi-
ents  of  the  social  integration  income  (revenu 
d’intégration sociale — RIS) or social assistance, 
and unemployed jobseekers receiving benefits. 
PMTIC training is delivered by training providers, 
such as non-profit enterprises, OISPs or CPASs 
(Article 5). For each beneficiary, training can be 
for a minimum of 8 hours and a maximum of 
48 hours.

3.2.  Duration of training

3.2.1. 

Length of training makes 
a difference

The length of participation in training measures 
can differ widely, depending on the programme, as 
well as on the individual needs of jobseekers but 
there is a dilemma between long duration training 
which often leads to certification and qualifica-
tion (that would usually not be feasible via short 
duration training) versus shorter duration training 
which can have more immediate positive effects 
in terms of employment.

Monitoring data suggest a tendency for train-
ing to be of shorter duration. For example, in 
Austria, where a range of measures are available, 
training measures last on average for 81 days. 
There is a clear focus on measures in the range 
of one to two months’ duration (42 %). A further 
17 % participated in short training programmes (up 
to 1 month) and around 7 % in long-lasting meas-
ures (half a year or longer). In Estonia, institutional 
training under the Labour Market Training scheme 
(Tööturukoolitus) is limited to one year and in prac-
tice two thirds of the training programmes lasted 
up to 1 month and the majority (93 %) were shorter 
than 3 months in 2010 (Lauringson et al., 2011).

Shorter programmes (below six months, and 
probably below four months) seem to be more 
effective  for  less  formal  training  activity, 
although longer programmes generate employ-
ment gains when the content is skill-intensive 
(What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth, 
2014). In particular, results from Italy suggest that 
a training duration of 300-600 hours seems to 
produce better employment results for unemployed 
adults. Here training content usually covers a wide 

On  the  other  hand,  a  number  of  studies  ques-
tion the effectiveness of short-duration provision, 
mainly from the point of view of whether (despite 
the positive outcomes of the evaluation studies) 
training programmes of such short duration can 
indeed play a major role in upskilling unemployed 
adults (Crépon et al, 2007, McGuinness et al, 2011).

Longer programmes tend to have more skill-
intensive content and are usually the ones 
leading to the acquisition of qualifications 
or part-qualifications. Overall, it is hard to gen-
eralise on the effectiveness of different types of 
training, especially since the benefits may depend 
on how well trained participants are, and the match 
of content to their existing skills.

Examples of more sophisticated studies with a 
degree of longitudinal tracking include Holl et al. 
(2013): unemployed people who took part in long-
duration training (between 182 days and 365 days) 
in  1999  were  ‘statistically  accompanied’  from 
2000 to 2010 by a progress analysis. This group 
was compared with two other groups: people who 
took part in shorter training (between 28 days and 
112 days) and people who were not in training 
at all. In 1999 (the year of training participation), 
those in longer training found the following situa-
tion: ‘in comparison with those who participated in 
shorter training, they had to deal with an additional 
184 days of training, were unemployed for 97 days 
longer, were in employment with full compulsory 
social  insurance  for  55  days  fewer,  which  was 
reflected in annual income from employment of 
EUR 2 056 less (without social transfers)’. But it 
only took a few years to gain an advantageous situ-
ation: the lost days of employment in 1999 were 
already  made  up  in  2003;  in  terms  of  annual 
income from employment, the catch-up process 
only took until 2001. The bonus of longer training 
compared with shorter training was effective in 
every single year up to the end of the statistical 
observation period (2010).

The effects of longer training programmes are 
positive not only for workers, but also for the public 
purse: additional training costs are offset by higher 
savings and additional charges, through less unem-
ployment and a higher income in subsequent years. 
The current reorientation of training measures in 
Austria can be seen to be in accordance with the 
results of the evaluation of Holl et al. (2013).

The research points to the importance of reorient-
ing training more towards higher value-added spe-
cific skills training and short-duration programmes 
aimed at enhancing a claimant’s job-search skills.

22

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision3.3.  Targeting of training

Member  States  have 
taken  different 
approaches  to  the  targeting  of  training  in 
terms of reaching different groups of unem-
ployed adults, depending on the national sys-
tem and framework. Some training is focused 
on  specific  groups  of  unemployed,  such  as 
immigrant workers or workers in certain sec-
tors, while other training constitutes standard 
programmes  for  the  long-term  unemployed 
(European  Employment  Observatory,  2012). 
The approaches include:

•  an emphasis on general provision for all (albeit 
with a concern to prioritise within that, or with 

special criteria applying to the participation of 
specific target groups);

• 

the  development  of  content  and  forms  of 
training specifically addressing the identified 
needs of different target groups (usually those 
with functional literacy issues or, for example, 
migrant workers with language needs).

The table below provides an overview of the strengths 
and weakness of the two approaches. It should be 
noted, however, that the EEPO review country articles 
provided varying levels of data on the inclusion of 
different groups of unemployed adults in the national 
systems of training, and the existence of evaluation 
evidence for specific groups tended to be rather weak. 

Table 3.1 General provision or targeted approaches towards disadvantaged groups

Approach

Strengths/opportunities

Challenges

General programmes (sometimes with 
special criteria for the inclusion of 
disadvantaged target groups)

Provision more widely available

Often with potential for flexible 
provision (e.g. longer duration for 
disadvantaged groups)

Could complement other targeted 
interventions (e.g. training as a 
complement to supported employment)

Could link to individual action plans 
(IAPs) and opportunities for tailored 
provisions

Generally weak monitoring of inclusion 
of target groups (data suggest 
low uptake)

Few evaluations to assess the benefits 
for different groups of workers

Generally not needs-specific provision 
(although could include add-ons to 
meet specific needs)

Targeted interventions for specific 
target groups

Comprehensive packages of support 
work well

Tend to be externally funded (ESF), 
raising sustainability questions

Locally based linking to local conditions

Inadequate availability of different 
training programmes at regional level 
(especially in small regions) may also 
be relevant

In the case of procured services, there 
is a difficulty with outsourcing services 
for very disadvantaged groups in 
defining the desired result and the 
basis of remuneration for the services 
provided

A  distinction  is  usually  drawn  in  relation 
to the existing skills/qualification levels of 
unemployed people, and schemes tend to be 
targeted at those with low skill levels. Low-
skilled individuals are worse affected by long-
term unemployment, since this group tends to be 
the most adversely affected by structural issues 
and changing economic conditions.

Training is an important measure that com-
plements other targeted schemes. In some 
cases, training provision is used to complement 
other measures for target groups of unemployed 

people,  although  in  such  cases  there  tends  to 
be  little  information  on  the  effectiveness  of 
the various components of the schemes. To an 
increasing extent, a targeted approach underpins 
the decision to include certain types of training/
training pathways in the national offer. Even in 
countries  such  as  Austria,  where  provision  of 
specific training paths is a feature, some of the 
training programmes are designed for specific 
groups of unemployed people. However, provi-
sion for specific target groups appears to remain 
relatively small in scale (despite the increasing 
trend towards targeted approaches).

23

The following two subsections look in more detail 
at prioritising certain groups via the general offer 
and the tailored offer for specific target groups.

cases,  training  for  disadvantaged  groups  has 
been distinguished from the general offer due to 
financing reasons.

3.3.1.  General offer

In general, training measures that are spe-
cifically targeted at people with disabilities 
last for longer. Training courses offered in 
the context of job-search training are usu-
ally shorter. Instead, where provision is open 
to all, there is often an element of tweaking the 
criteria for different groups facing labour market 
disadvantage (i.e. in terms of length of training, 
benefits received, etc.). For example, the success-
ful professonalisation contract arrangements in 
France usually last 6-12 months, but the dura-
tion can be longer for the long-term unemployed 
or for beneficiaries of active solidarity revenue 
(maximum 24 months). In Greece, the scheme 
called Training voucher in sectors of economic 
activity with obligatory guaranteed employment, 
applies to all holders of a valid unemployment 
card, and those who are long-term unemployed, 
less than 45 years of age, on low family and per-
sonal income and with relevant work experience 
receive a premium.

Where  disadvantaged  target  groups  are 
included in the general offer, there should 
be strong monitoring of uptake by different 
groups, so that this approach can go further 
than a simple signposting and prioritisation 
of groups for inclusion within the general 
offer. For example, in the Czech Republic it is up 
to the PES to make specific decisions for each 
unemployed person with regard to training, but 
the Ministry of Labour regularly issues a general 
directive  as  to  how  ALMP  should  be  targeted, 
i.e. which demographic groups should be priori-
tised. This example suggests, however, that this 
approach to targeting can be rather hit and miss: 
there does not appear to be any ex-post central-
ised measurement of target groups covered by 
training (although individual labour offices may 
track their performance in targeting, this informa-
tion is not available at the Ministry of Labour).

Provision of training for those farthest from 
the labour market can be variable and an 
underemphasised aspect of ALMPs in some 
countries. At the same time, there is a labour 
and skills shortage in some occupations, and it 
is therefore relevant to develop the vocational 
skills of disadvantaged groups. For example, in 
Bulgaria, training is only included in some (not all) 
programmes. The training element was removed 
from such important programmes as those for 
people  with  disabilities,  and  new  employment 
opportunities  for  persons  aged  50+.  In  some 

Available evidence suggests that there is 
very little adaptation of education and train-
ing activities to the needs of different target 
groups. In Slovakia, a survey carried out among 
labour office representatives in 2013 showed that 
many disadvantaged unemployed people had to 
be rejected because demand exceeded supply 
(Keselova, 2013).

Overall, it appears that specific groups of 
unemployed adults are not especially preva-
lent among the beneficiaries of training.

In Germany, within the vocational further training 
of unemployed scheme (the main permanent PES 
programme, in place since 1998) people with a low 
level of qualifications, and in particular those with 
no recognised formal qualifications, are a specific 
priority group. However, only 10 % were 50 years 
and older, and the share of severely disabled peo-
ple amounted to less than 3 % (Bundesagentur 
für Arbeit, 2014c). In Spain, according to CIDEC 
(2012), social exclusion factors, especially lack 
of previous educational qualifications, contribute 
to a decrease in the probability of participation in 
training for employment activities: while 30 % of 
people with VET skills have never been enrolled in 
Spain, this proportion soars to 78 % among those 
who have no education diploma (lack of informa-
tion about the programmes was identified as the 
main reason for this). The insertion rate of people 
at risk of social exclusion is slightly lower than for 
other jobseekers (37 % and 46 %, respectively) 
(see country article on Spain for further details).

In some cases, the system is changing along 
with a narrowing of the focus of the provi-
sion, in order to target resources on those 
with  the  greatest  need  for  training  sup-
port. In Denmark, as part of the Danish ALMP, 
for decades the insured unemployed were enti-
tled to 6 weeks of training and education after 
a certain spell of unemployment. The choice of 
education was up to the unemployed person (it 
had to be offered by a public institution) and this 
was mainly used by unemployed skilled work-
ers and unemployed people with an academic 
background (Rambøll, 2011). In a recent reform 
the target group has been narrowed to include 
only  unskilled  and  skilled  workers.  Access  to 
training  is  now  granted  from  the  first  day  of 
unemployment,  but  the  choice  must  be  made 
from a predefined national list specifying which 
courses may be pursued. This is prepared by the 
Ministry of Employment, with the involvement of 
the Ministry of Education and the social partners. 
The reason for the policy shift was an ambition 

24

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionto focus the use of the measure more directly on 
unemployed people with lower skill levels, and to 
exclude academics and other groups with higher 
educational levels.

3.3.2.  Use of inclusion criteria 

to support targeting

Setting the inclusion criteria for training in a tar-
geted way is a common method of targeting pri-
ority groups. For example, in the Danish context 
there is detailed specification of the age group to 
be targeted by a measure and close attention is 
paid to the risk of deadweight losses in defining 
other eligibility criteria, e.g. the duration of previ-
ous unemployment.

Frameworks in place for the provision of spe-
cific training paths for unemployed people with 
a specific profile are extremely helpful in terms 
of  providing  a  mechanism  by  which  to  target 
training interventions on certain target groups 
on the ground.

At the same time, it should be noted that, depend-
ing on the nature of the obligations of the PES 
to elaborate an individual training pathway for 
all unemployed people, this could be a difficult 
task in practice. In Spain, a 2007 policy put the 
focus  of  training  on  disadvantaged  groups  of 
workers: women, young people, disabled people, 
victims of gender violence and terrorism, long-
term unemployed, people over 45 and people at 
risk of social exclusion; however, relatively few of 
these harder-to-help unemployed workers appear 
to have been included in individual training path-
ways. For instance, among the 12 908 new par-
ticipants in the minimum income scheme of the 
Madrid Region in 2013, just 2 795 were included in 
individual employment pathways. All participants 
have to subscribe to an activation engagement, 
which commits them to accept an appropriate job 
offer and to participate in active labour market 
programmes proposed by the PES in their region. 
However, the coverage of training among these 
workers is reported to be very low (7 % in case 
of the Prepara Programme participants). Thus the 
obligation is more theoretical than real, and the 
link between active and passive labour market 
policies is still marginal.

Partnerships with specialised private and public 
service providers can be useful in order to provide 
better service for people with individual social or 

psychological problems (particularly if no spe-
cialised staff is available at the PES). In the UK, 
long-term unemployed individuals (or those at 
risk of becoming long-term unemployed, such as 
disabled people, drug users and ex-offenders) 
are referred to private or voluntary organisations 
(Tubb, 2012).

Provision for targeted groups of unemployed peo-
ple at risk of exclusion tends to concentrate on 
training programmes managed by third sector 
organisations with expertise in the issues; these 
are  often  financed  by  schemes  which  include 
external funding, such as the ESF (in Spain exam-
ples include schemes for the Roma population 
(Acceder Programme) and disabled people (Por 
Talento Programme). This raises issues about the 
extent to which target group-specific approaches 
are mainstreamed within the national systems 
of  provision  —  and  possibly  about  question-
able sustainability.

Some examples show the fragility of certain types 
of targeted provision depending on the funding 
options (including the availability of ESF funding), 
and the need to make this type of provision attrac-
tive to the target groups. The ‘Functional Literacy’ 
scheme in fYROM was financed by IPA, and once 
the financing stopped there was no further inter-
est in organising the courses.

3.4.  Training provision for specific 

target groups

When measures specifically target the low-skilled 
unemployed,  their  focus  is  more  often  about 
increasing the level of skills and qualifications of 
the targeted persons and less often about return 
to  employment.  On  the  other  hand,  measures 
expressly targeting the LTU, women and older 
workers more often emphasize return to employ-
ment. Of course, this is a generalisation, as the 
groups often overlap, e.g. older unemployed fall-
ing into long-term unemployment, etc.

The table below outlines the number of coun-
tries (and training measures in each country) that 
specifically target low-skilled unemployed adults, 
LTU, older workers, women, migrants and people 
with disabilities. The classification in the table 
was made on the basis of measures identified 
as significant in the country articles, while there 
may be some double-counting if measures target 
more than one disadvantaged group.

25

Table 3.2 Overview of measures targeting specific disadvantaged groups

Basic skills 
for the 
low-skilled

Raise 
qualification 
level of 
low-skilled

Measures 
only for LTU

Measures for 
older workers

Measures for 
women

Measures for 
migrants

Measures for 
people with 
disabilities

BG (2)

CY (1)

DK (1)

ES (2)

FR (1)

IT (1)

HR (1)

MT (1)

fYROM (1)

AT (1)

BE (1)

CY (1)

DE (1)

DK (2)

EL (1)

HU (1)

IT (1)

LT (5)

MT (1)

PT (2)

fYROM (1)

NO (2)

RS (1)

10

20

BE (1)

CY (3)

DK (1)

EE (2)

EL (1)

FR (1)

FI (1)

IE (2)

HU (1)

LU (2)

PT (1)

RO (2)

SI (1)

UK (1)

TR (1)

21

AT (1)

BG (2)

DE (1)

FI (1)

HU (1)

MT (1)

UK (1) fYROM 
(1)

AT (1)

BG (1)

EL (4)

HU (1)

MT (2)

UK (1)

TR (1)

RS (1)

BE (1)

BG (2)

DE (1)

FI (1)

HR (1)

IT (2)

MT (1)

AT (1)

SI (1)

SE (1)

TR (1)

BE (1)

BG (3)

EE (1)

EL (1)

HU (2)

IT (1)

NL (1)

MT (1)

RO (1)

SE (3)

SI (1)

TR (3)

RS (1)

9

12

13

20

A number of countries target low-skilled work-
ers via general measures for unemployed people, 
often involving vocational courses of relatively 
short duration. In addition to general measures, 
many  countries  (19  countries  with  a  total  of 
34 measures) have designed measures spe-
cifically targeting low-skilled, unemployed 
adults. Broadly, these measures either focus on 
enhancing the individual’s basic skills (including 
literacy,  numeracy,  digital  skills,  host  country 
language skills in the case of migrants, etc.) or 
on improving their level of qualification, either 
by helping them to complete general education 
or secondary VET. Denmark and Germany have 
measures offering a second chance for adults 
to participate in dual VET. Denmark also has an 
initiative offering assessment of prior learning to 
low-skilled 30+ year olds. The assessment may 
last between half a day and 10 days and is carried 
out in schools themselves.

Seventeen of the 33 countries covered by EEPO 
and  included  in  the  EEPO  review  have  pro-
grammes that support the long-term unemployed. 
Across the 17 countries, there were 38 separate 
training programmes relevant to the LTU. These 
are programmes that either focus solely on the 
long-term unemployed LTU or that give long-term 
unemployed people as one of several population 
groups targeted by the programme. The above 

table shows the 21 measures explicitly targeting 
the LTU. The remaining countries do not specify 
the LTU as a distinct target group in their pro-
grammes of support. This does not mean that 
these countries do not support the LTU, but simply 
that they are not given as a priority group. For 
example, long-term unemployment is highly cor-
related with other characteristics, such as low or 
no skills and qualifications, disability and certain 
benefits; and so programmes may be targeted 
at these groups because they tend to be long-
term unemployed.

Eight of the 33 countries covered by this review 
have  programmes  which  specifically  support 
older  workers.  In  the  main  these  are  pro-
grammes which target older workers as one of 
several population groups. Only two programmes 
are aimed solely at older workers (Austria — New 
Skills and fYROM — Improving access to tertiary 
education for adult population). Older people are 
defined differently in different countries. Of the 
10  programmes  aimed  at  older  workers,  five 
define older as 50+, three as 45+, and one pro-
gramme as 40+ (Malta). One scheme (fYROM) has 
an age range of 45+ for men and 35+ for women.

In terms of their aims, one of the training pro-
grammes was aimed at preventing low-skilled 
people  becoming  unemployed,  and  one  was 

26

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionaimed at helping people start their own business. 
All other programmes focused on labour market 
entry of unemployed people through raising their 
skills  and  qualification  levels.  Where  outcome 
measures are available, they identify a positive 
impact of the programmes but do not differenti-
ate between different target groups.

implement  training 
Several  countries  also 
measures specifically for other disadvantaged 
segments, such as women, migrants, ethnic 
minorities, and people with disabilities:

•  Women  are  targeted  by  12  training  meas-
ures from eight countries. In Austria, a train-
ing measure aimed at encouraging women to 
diversify in craft and engineering professions 
offers beneficiaries the possibility to gain a 
variety  of  qualifications  (apprenticeships; 
school-based  training  courses  at  technical 
universities  of  applied  sciences,  secondary 
colleges for engineering, post-secondary col-
leges). Several supportive measures are also 
part of the programme, e.g. career guidance, 
pre-training  programme  (to  acquire  basic 
skills in crafts and engineering), counselling 
and guidance.

•  Migrants are included in the target groups of 
13 measures in 11 countries and they often 
include training programmes to enhance the 
language skills of migrants in the host country.

•  People from ethnic minorities are targeted in 

Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia and Serbia.

•  People  with  disabilities  are  targeted  by 
20 measures in 13 countries. For example, in 
Sweden, from 2006, a three-stage model com-
prising three new initiatives for jobseekers with 
disabilities was introduced: guidance and iden-
tification, subsidised employment, and finally 
employment with the objective of transferring 
to regular employment; these measures can 
be combined with participation in a vocational 
employment training programme with a per-
sonal assistant or assistive devices.

Outcomes are influenced by participant 
variables:

Drawing conclusions in relation to the ben-
efits to workers with different existing skills 
and qualifications is contested (and outcomes 
may depend on the suitability of the offer to the 
target group since the needs of high or low skilled 
workers are not the same). In Hungary, although 
there is no evidence of ‘creaming’, the impact of 
training is much larger on the better educated 
than on the less educated (O’Leary, 1998). Higher 

levels of the recipients’ formal educational have 
been linked to the achievement of better employ-
ment outcomes across a range of different types 
of provision in Italy.

In cases where general schemes for the long-
term  unemployed  have  not  evaluated  well, 
schemes  for  low-skilled  workers  come  out  as 
more  effective  (European  Commission,  2012, 
in relation to schemes in Croatia and Hungary). 
Overall there is some suggestion that training 
achieves better results for the least-skilled par-
ticipants. Among few quantitative evaluations of 
ALMP  programmes  in  Croatia,  Matković,  Babić 
and Vuga (2012) focused on the effectiveness 
of the ALMP programmes implemented by the 
PES in the period 2009-2010. Surprisingly, educa-
tion programmes on average resulted in reduced 
probability of employment, compared with control 
groups, apart from when certain sub-populations 
were observed: persons without upper-secondary 
education and persons who entered unemploy-
ment from inactivity (rather than from education) 
showed the best outcomes from training.

Other evaluations suggest that unskilled work-
ers are more likely to go into jobs follow-
ing training than skilled workers who take 
part in training. However, this is contested 
elsewhere and may reflect specific labour 
market or other factors. For example, in Serbia 
in 2014, the pilot net impact evaluation of four 
training programmes was conducted within the 
IPA 2011 Employment Support Project; although 
the applied methodology probably overestimated 
the net effects, it is indicative that both of the 
programmes that targeted (exclusively or par-
tially)  unskilled  adults  showed  much  stronger 
positive effects than the two programmes that 
engaged predominantly skilled unemployed per-
sons (Employment Support Project, 2014). The 
2012  RILSA  report  in  the  Czech  Republic  also 
compared the evolution of the chances of regis-
tered unemployed participants with a constructed 
control group of similar non-participants: in 2009, 
the highly skilled participants did worse than the 
highly skilled non-participants. This could easily 
be the effect of unobservable quality that drives 
selection into the programme. Similarly, the fact 
that elementary-educated participants do some-
what better than similarly skilled non-participants 
is probably down to selection. According to the 
2013  RILSA  report  (p.  77),  DLO  personnel  are 
largely sceptical about the effect of retraining 
in the post-crisis years due to the low number of 
vacancies. DLOs often view retraining as a way of 
maintaining labour market attachment. Training 
for lower-skilled groups of unemployed, especially 
those in regions with high unemployment rates, 
tends to be more efficient in terms of net effects 
(Stefanik, 2014).

27

Evaluations show that training employment out-
comes are positively influenced by some variables. 
In general, women and older people have been 
found to have lower rates of re-employment, 
and recipients who are in receipt of unem-
ployment benefit tend to have higher rein-
tegration rates than inactive participants. 
There  are  variations  by  age  in  the  proportion 
of unemployed returning to jobs after training 
actions. The evaluation of the range of measures 
in France found that the proportion of older unem-
ployed participants is low (16 % in 2013, 10 % in 
2012), but the proportion in jobs 6 months after is 
also very low compared to other age groups: only 
35 % in 2013 (compared to 56 % for unemployed 
aged under 25 years old). This study also showed 
that there are gender differences in the proportion 

of unemployed people returning to work after 
training: higher for men than for women.

There is some suggestion that the use of indi-
vidualised approaches is particularly help-
ful for some more marginalised groups of 
unemployed people. In Estonia, results show 
that training has been more useful for women, 
the elderly, persons with a lower level of educa-
tion and those who have been unemployed for a 
shorter period of time (Lauringson et al., 2011). 
However, results from Italy (Lombardy region) 
in  relation  to  the  2011-2012  Re-employment 
and  Re-qualification  Endowment  programme 
suggested that women and older workers have 
less chance of employment after participating in 
the programme. 

28

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision4.  Lessons from comparative analysis 

This section compares the strengths and weak-
nesses  of  different  national  training  policies 
and approaches with respect to facilitating the 
employability of unemployed adults, with a focus 
on matching unemployed people to the right train-
ing for them and raising the skills profile of the 

low-skilled unemployed. It draws on the evaluation 
findings in relation to key schemes, with a focus on 
evaluations which have captured the net employ-
ment outcomes. It goes on to discuss features of 
schemes which stand out as effective in design, 
and discusses the role of the ESF. 

Key policy messages

Although evaluation results on the benefits of training for persons with different skill 
levels is not conclusive, there is some evidence that tailored training achieves better 
results for the low-skilled than general schemes:

•  Overall, evaluations tend to be relatively unsophisticated and few studies use an experimental 

design and/or take into account the net effect of interventions.

• 

It is difficult to compare the relative success of different schemes because the outcomes 
depend on the mix of target groups and each scheme’s objectives.

•  Country-specific evidence indicates that interventions which include a package of measures 
and that combine training with other labour market measures are successful and that a mix-
and-match approach may pay dividends.

•  Evaluation results tend to be most positive when the training is well tailored to the person’s 

potential, employers’ skill needs and leads to formal qualifications.

•  Employer-based approaches (i.e. those targeting specific vacancies and on-the-job training 
placement schemes) generate higher employment outcomes than classroom-based training).

4.1.  Strengths and weaknesses 
of different approaches

Practices are interesting within each country con-
text, as Member States have different starting 
points and policy priorities. There are different 
types of training (i.e. ranging from shorter, up-
skilling courses and brief employability training 
interventions to long duration, reskilling courses 
with a vocational focus), and different delivery 
approaches (devolved/centralised), as discussed 
in  previous  chapters.  Different  approaches  to 
matching  unemployed  adults  to  training  (e.g. 
delivered  by  PES,  procured/voucher  based),  as 
well as employer engagement and sector skills 
approaches  are  discussed  in  this  section.  The 
advantages and remaining challenges of the dif-
ferent types of approaches are discussed below.

4.1.1.  Approaches for directing 

unemployed people 
to the ‘right’  training

The  PES  has  a  key  role  to  play,  but  self-
directed training is also important. The route 
to training for unemployed adults may depend 

on whether the training is arranged by the local 
labour  office  or  individually  by  the  jobseeker. 
Decisions on training can be underpinned by an 
individual action plan process, which is impor-
tant in the effective functioning of the system of 
training for unemployed adults. It is considered 
good practice for employment advisers to have 
responsibility for a specific group of occupations, 
in relation to both jobseekers and/or employers in 
order to build up appropriate expertise.

Self-selection of courses is more important 
in some Member States than in others where 
the  options  are  narrower.  The  participant 
chooses (often via training vouchers) and there 
appears to be increasing interest in this approach. 
Different voucher systems or other means of pay-
ment of the training costs have been used for 
some time (in Estonia, Greece, Finland, France, 
Italy, Latvia, Iceland), and are being introduced in 
other Member States (e.g. Slovakia). For example, 
in Greece the authorities have introduced ‘training 
vouchers’, in order to help unemployed people 
seeking continuing vocational training (as well as 
initial training) exercise more personal choice in 
relation to time, subject of training and training 
provider. Further, a new portal (www.step.gov.gr), 

29

became available, aiming at bringing together all 
currently available opportunities in the fields of 
lifelong learning, vocational training and access to 
employment. However, lack of general awareness 
of these types of individualised schemes is an 
issue. There is also a suggestion that the voucher 
approach makes the administrative burden some-
what heavy on managing education providers.

database  on  the  PES  website,  which  includes 
about 70 000 training offers provided by about 
3 000 training institutes. In France, according to 
a recent survey conducted by the Ile de France 
regional council on unemployed people’s access 
to training, in 40 % of cases access is through 
the PES, but in 35 % of cases it happens through 
the internet.

The  internet  is  also  contributing  to  increased 
self-selection  in  training.  In  Austria,  for  the 
self-selection  of  appropriate  training  courses, 
PES  customers  find  the  continuous  training 

The  table  below  summarises  the  strengths 
and weaknesses of PES-directed training, self-
selected training and training underpinned by an 
individual action plan. 

Table 4.1 Approaches directing unemployed people to training

Strengths

Challenges

 - Prioritises unemployed for inclusion 

according to needs (e.g. based on profiling, 
a hard-to-employ unemployed person may 
have priority over jobseekers with better 
chances in the labour market)

 - The selection process of applicants 
interested in training is often non-
transparent and dependent on subjective 
factors (Borik and Caban, 2013).

 - Caseworker might signpost a client on the 

basis of the supply of provision, rather than 
client needs

 - Mechanisms for profiling and matching are 

not always adequate

 - Staff to unemployed ratios are an issue for 
the effectiveness of matching processes 

 - Services are provided based on the individual 

 - Resource intensive for PES, where IAP 

needs of unemployed people

 - Opportunity for matching to other provision 

prepared by case manager in cooperation 
with unemployed people person

(i.e. taking into account the specific 
hindrances that individuals face)

 - Effective matching could be limited by 

resource issues

 - Can be linked to sanctions, in case of failure 

 - The jobseeker needs to articulate clearly his/

to comply with the IAP 

her employment plans

 - Encourages autonomy of unemployed people

 - Awareness of schemes and benefits needs 

to be addressed

 - Can create higher administrative burden for 

the PES to manage training providers

 - Duration of training is usually limited

 - Some evaluation results indicate that 

participation in voucher-based training has 
stronger impact on future employment and 
incomes than procured training (Lauringson 
et al., 2011)

 - Helps to reduce regional differences in 

availability of education

 - Can be used to purchase training that 
corresponds to the specific needs of 
unemployed people

 - Targets disadvantaged groups (e.g. older 

workers, immigrants) and can help increase 
their participation in adult education 

Approach
Direction by PES 

Individual Action 
Planning process

Participant 
chooses (includes 
voucher schemes)

30

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision4.1.2.  Making training relevant 

to the labour market

It is clear from the country articles that a main 
challenge  is  the  design  of  training  measures 
which  provide  skills  that  are  in  high  demand 
among employers (and/or relevant to meet the 
future needs of the economy). A further chal-
lenge to the national framework is to address 
mismatches on the labour market through train-
ing schemes. In some countries, the employer 
role is relatively underdeveloped. The general 
trend appears to be towards sustainable mod-
els  of  building  employability  that  will  remain 
relevant over time (i.e. linking training to labour 
market  forecasting  approaches,  or  training 
being embedded in the national qualifications 
frameworks).

Local adaptation to needs and trends

In many Member States, although training pro-
grammes are delivered through national projects 
prepared at the central level, territorial labour 
offices adjust the offer of training courses to 
regional  and  local  conditions.  In  Sweden,  the 
administration and organisation of training is 
a combination of centralised governance (PES 
headquarters) regarding the selection and pro-
curement process of training providers and a 
decentralised decision process at the local PES 
offices regarding the allocation of participants 
to  the  various  training  programmes  and  the 
choice  of  training  providers  adapted  to  local 
labour market conditions. The coordinating unit 
at PES headquarters serves as a link between 
the  central  procurement  unit  and  the  local 
PES  offices,  and  in  cooperation  with  industry 
councils, the coordinating unit also evaluates 
and ensures that the content of training corre-
sponds to the requirements of the labour market. 
(Statskontoret, The Swedish Agency for Public 
Management, 2012). In Slovakia, labour offices 
are required by law to prepare regional labour 
market analyses and forecasts, and a multipar-
tite committee for employment issues, formed 
within each labour office, decides about local 
priorities in terms of activation policies, including 
training needs.

The key issue is the extent to which the provi-
sion is flexible enough to respond to the intel-
ligence. In Slovakia, available research studies 
conclude that training programmes are unable to 
respond flexibly to regional labour market needs, 
owing mainly to burdensome procurement rules 
(Keselova, 2013; Stefanik, 2014).

Moreover,  evaluation  of  training  for  unem-
ployed people shows that the match between 

training and future jobs is unlikely to be exact. 
A report assessing vocational training conducted 
by Bruxelles Formation shows that in 56 % of 
cases there is a specific link between the first 
job and the training pursued, whereas 26 % of 
first jobs have no link with the training pursued. 
A key issue for the training system is where the 
upskilling provision does not lead to occupational 
upward mobility. In Austria, for example, surveys 
have shown that only about half of the partici-
pants in qualification measures are more satis-
fied with the new job after upskilling. Many of 
them do not see any connection between train-
ing and a successful job search. This points to 
problems with the way training for unemployed 
people currently operates: the training offered 
needs to be based upon a sound assessment 
both of the needs of the labour market and of 
the skills profile of each individual.

Focus is on linking to employers’ 
requirements

Member States are working to link training for 
unemployed adults to current and future employ-
ment  opportunities,  either  directly  through 
customised schemes, with specific employers 
in mind, or indirectly based on labour market 
forecasts. Targeting of provision to jobs is par-
ticularly apparent in Belgium, where the public 
authorities tend to adopt a job-analysis approach 
(Agulhon, 2010; Bruyère & Lemistre, 2010) to 
vocational  training  and  its  relationship  with 
employment. This approach assumes that spe-
cific training delivers a number of specialised 
skills needed for a specific job. The choice of the 
specific sectoral content of the educational pro-
grammes presupposes some information about 
the specific bottlenecks to be expected of the 
future labour market, and points to the need for 
flexibility of the adult education system in order 
to adapt to the changing patterns of demand 
for qualifications.

In general, employer-centred provision tends 
to be based on somewhat ‘reactive’ schemes, 
designed to respond to companies’ immedi-
ate labour market demands. This generalisation 
often even applies to the provision that directly 
involves employers. For example, the traditional 
approach to training unemployed people in France 
reflects a focus on returning unemployed people 
to employment as quickly as possible in jobs. In 
general, the measures have been designed to 
reach this objective with little sectoral focus, and 
the ‘100 000 preferential training programmes’ 
plan launched by President Hollande in 2013 and 
now conducted by regions follows the same logic 
by  identifying  a  training  path  for  unemployed 
people in order to answer the local recruitment 

31

needs of companies (7). Other similar approaches 
which respond to vacancies at employers include 
the Bridge to Employment (Northern Ireland), by 
which the job centre advisers work with employ-
ers to identify their job-related skills needs and 
then provide customised programmes for suit-
able jobseekers, who are guaranteed an interview 

on completion of their training. This approach is 
called a ‘matching approach’, because it tends to 
match vacancies and the skills of unemployed 
people. However, it is increasingly being argued 
that this approach tends to diminish sustainable 
return to employment, maintaining and develop-
ing employability and security for career paths (8).  

Table 4.2 Strengths and weaknesses of different employer-focused approaches

Approach
Matching approach

Strengths/opportunities

Challenges

 - Responds to actual vacancy

 - Difficult to have a clear view of 

 - Puts unemployed trainee and 

employers together (e.g. through 
guaranteed interview)

Consultation and local 
adaptation (tends to be 
local level)

Employer responsive 
provision

 - Creates preconditions for training and 
employment agreements which boost 
post-training employment rates

companies’ future needs

 - Tends to lead PES counsellors to impose 
training actions on unemployed people (9)

 - Tends to foster return to work in sectors 
different from those of the training 
programme, suggesting challenges around 
matching. In that situation, positive 
effects of training actions are drastically 
decreased

 - Success depends on flexibility of provision, 
which may be constrained by procurement 
rules

 - May rely on external funding, e.g. ESF 

(sustainability issues)

 - Depends on employer engagement/

incentives

 - Employer-specific skills may not be 

 - Actualisation of training programmes in 
accordance with the needs of employers

transferrable

 - Helps to ensure practical skills elements

 - Contributes to higher post-training 
employment rates and concurrently 
ensures the ability to adapt the content 
of training programmes to the needs of 
real jobs, i.e. improvement of vocational 
training quality (Lithuania)

 - Good evaluation results (see below)

 - Depends on employer engagement/

Training delivered by 
employers

Sector-based approaches

 - Meets labour market needs or supports 
structural change based on forecasting 
future jobs

 - Helps to ensure practical skills elements

incentives

 -

Issues re monitoring and assuring quality 
need to be addressed

 - Danger of habitual support in view of 

strong lobbyists

(8) 

(9) 

 The orientation process is key to this: employment 
actors, when orienting unemployed people towards 
training programmes, have a responsibility to make 
sure that the programme is in line with a viable 
professional project.

 The proportion of people giving up before the end of 
the programme is 6 percentage points higher in that 
case (16 % against 10 % when training actions are not 
imposed).

(7) 

 In France, more and more emphasis is being put on 
certifying training programmes, as shown by the 
training reform of March 2014.

32

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionThere were numerous examples in the country 
reports of consultation with employers (notably 
in Nordic Member States but also elsewhere). At 
the local and regional level, there are additional 
opportunities  to  involve  social  partners  in  the 
selection and content of vocational and educa-
tional training. The extent of involvement of social 
partners and employers appears to be depend-
ent on local conditions and contacts/ networks 
between local PES offices and local employers 
and trade union representatives.

4.1.3. 

Employer-based approaches

training; on-the-job training placement schemes; 
and formal adult apprenticeship delivery mod-
els. Programmes that bring employers and pro-
spective employees into reasonable matches are 
considered generally very useful in a number 
of  countries,  and  have  some  advantages,  as 
described in the table below. Theoretically, once 
someone has acquired some job experience and 
has trained to apply his or her education in the 
workplace, the prospects of continued employ-
ment  with  the  same  or  a  different  employer 
should be much improved. The evaluation results 
suggest  that  this  can  lead  to  higher  employ-
ment outcomes.

Engaging employers in the frameworks of train-
ing for unemployed adults has been addressed in 
a number of ways, ranging from: targeting train-
ing on specific vacancies; use of internships with 

The main challenges are around putting in place 
adequate  incentives  for  employers,  providing 
regulated training provision, and not generating 
big bureaucracy.

Table 4.3 Review of different models of employer-based approaches 

Approach example

Insertion measures

 -

Strengths
Insert the LTU into a professional working 
environment

Challenges

 - They encompass training actions, but the 

emphasis of those actions is not on training

Placement of 
unemployed tertiary 
graduates

 - Can include support with training actions, 

e.g. validation of field experience and social 
support 

 - Appears to address a real need 

 - Short-term measure in response to labour 

(unemployment among graduates)

market conditions

 - Has not made any inroads into unemployment 

among tertiary education graduates

 - Supports unemployed and employers (a good 
match between the education of the applicant 
and the business/organisational environment 
is sought)

 - Can be linked to certification (a certificate of 
training and work experience was granted 
upon graduation)

 - Participation is usually incentivised through 

payment of a wage (10)

 - Can build on existing skills and competences 

(on-the-job training relevant to the applicant’s 
education and work experience)

 - Employment outcomes appear promising (11)

(10) 

(11) 

 Paid EUR 125 per week minus 7.8 % employee social insurance contributions; 9.8 % employer contributions to social insurance covered.

 The percentage employed is higher if the hosting firm/organisation is in the private sector (given hiring restrictions in public sector under the Memorandum 
of Understanding); 80 % of participants state that the match between their education and the placement is good.

33

Approach example

Strengths

Internships

 - Placement component of the programme is 

Challenges
 - Focus on practical company-specific skills (may 

designed to provide relevant work experience, 
and as such may facilitate on-the-job training

 - Participation could be incentivised (e.g. Ireland’s 
JobBridge National Internship Scheme: the 
wage incentive takes the form of a weekly EUR 
50 top-up paid to the participant in addition to 
his or her social welfare payment)

 - Meets a need of many recent vocational school 
graduates who have little work experience 
(company training)

 - Allows companies to learn about a prospective 

not be transferrable)

 - Could be seen as compensatory measure after 
vocational school graduates have fallen into 
unemployment: an alternative approach might 
be to support schools to sufficiently cooperate 
with employers to raise their employment 
outcomes

Work practice schemes

 -

hire and may thus facilitate hiring
Improves the knowledge and skills of 
unemployed people and gives them an 
opportunity to gain practical experience

 - Employment effect is negative in the first few 
months of practice, which is likely to be the 
result of the so-called ‘locking-in effect’. 

 - Organised by the employers in a real work 

environment

 - Based on a formal contract with obligations to 
ensure proper supervision/quality assurance 
procedures (12)

 - Evaluation shows a significant positive effect 

on the employment status and income levels of 
the participants 

Employer training 
allowances for taking on 
unemployed

Combining employment 
with training (working 
contract of part time in a 
company and part time in 
a training centre)

Matching training to 
vacancy

Specific skills matching 
with skills shortages 

 - Training is directly linked to a job

 - Expensive to administer

 - Helps companies to finance training before 

 - Tend to concern relatively few people 

establishing a job position

 - There appear to be better return-to-work rates 
for beneficiaries on these training programmes 

 - Combines employment with formal training

 - Mainly applies to young people rather than 

 - Usually provides training leading to a certificate

adults

 - Based on established systems to identify, 
implement and monitor the training and 
employment contracts

 - May be limited by employer demand

 - Usually offers long-term training over 

6-12 months (duration could be higher for long-
term unemployed or disadvantaged)

 - Evaluation suggests that this measure has 
good results in terms of insertion into the 
labour market

 - Responds to labour market needs

 - Represents a notable direct collaboration 

between employers and the PES

 - Aims at giving unemployed people the 

 - Mainly a pre-recruitment measure

opportunity to be trained for a job identified as 
lacking candidates in a specific territory

 - Based on cooperation between the range 
of actors at local level in design and 
implementation

 - Some suggestion that the measure is not 
so costly compared to e.g. putting in place 
‘professionalisation contract’ with employers

 - Could be used to complement other measures

 - Could enhance professional coherency

 - Does not tend to provide direct obligations to 

hire

 - Relies on having options for quality provision

 - Appears to attract mainly people close to the 
labour market with a stable professional path 
before entering the programme 

(12) 

 Labour Market Services and Benefits Act 2014.

34

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionApproach example

On-the-job training 
schemes

Strengths
 - Employer relevant: types of skills depends on 

the job

Challenges

 - Tend to be relatively short-term schemes to 

bring workers and companies together

 - Enables the acquisition and enhancement of 
knowledge, skills and competences related to 
the concrete job

 - Offers opportunity to unemployed persons to 
present their skills to potential future employer

 - Chance to learn and get work experience, 

increasing employability and updating skills

 - Focused on practical workplace training

 - Probably high employment rates
 - Promotes self-activity and responds to local 
needs (founded through the initiative of the 
social partners at company or regional level)

 - Can respond both to potential mass lay-offs 
and the need for certain skills, as well as 
offering appropriate training for workers to 
meet employers’ special skills bottlenecks

 - Focused on development and implementation 

of individualised processes in the labour market 
(e.g. career reorientation, upgrading of skills, 
targeted qualifications)

 - Participation in a wide range of qualification 
/training measures is possible (upskilling, 
apprenticeship exams, or longer studies)

 - Several instruments can be implemented, with 
qualifications as the core part, e.g. vocational 
reorientation, job search, internships etc.

 - Participants have individual training plan, based 
on profound assessment and orientation, and 
case management by the Foundation

 - Evidence suggests re-employment rates are 

higher than with other measures

 -

Involves companies in labour market policy and 
thus relieves public budgets

 - Qualification for occupations in demand
 - Shows significant positive employment effects 
for adults who come from unemployment.

 -

Increases general income levels for the 
unskilled

Labour Foundations

Adult apprenticeships

 - A very cost-intensive instrument compared to 
other labour market measures (but probably 
more effective)

 - Cannot be financed by the ESF

 - Most participants choose longer-duration 

measures (average duration was 17 months cf. 
Sozialministerium, 2014)

 - Possible displacement of young apprentices

 - Requires economic incentives for employers 

to take in adults

 - Monitoring shows gender imbalances (though 
corresponding to the distribution of vocational 
education in general)

 - Declining proportion of adult apprentices 

coming from unemployment benefit in DK 
(30 % in 2001 to 18 % in 2011)

35

4.2.  Evaluation findings

This section considers the results of evaluations 
of training interventions for unemployed adults — 
with a focus on the evidence around the employ-
ment  outcomes.  The  availability  of  evaluation 
evidence is variable, and there are a number of 
challenges to rigorous evaluation.

4.2.1.  What are the outcomes 
of the training

Key measures of success are usually related 
to the employment outcomes: getting a job, 
time taken to get a job and sustainability 
of employment, although other outcomes 
(such as effect on qualifications, income) 
might also feature. This can be measured by 
positively testing employment circumstances over 
time, or by tracking any returns to the unemploy-
ment register over time (the latter is often the 
easiest approach for the PES). Evaluations based 
on questionnaires tend to include the participants’ 
perceptions of the training and perceived benefits 
and shortcomings.

A recent evaluation of the professional status 
mobility  of  participants  in  further  vocational 
training in Germany shows that participation in 
further  vocational  training,  compared  to  non-
participation, helped to avoid downward mobility. 
The study shows that further vocational training 
had a strong positive effect on the probability 
of transition into the craft-specific labour mar-
ket (upward mobility); and additional analysis of 
the respondents’ subjective evaluation of their 
new job (compared to their old job) confirms the 
results (Deeke and Baas, 2012) (13). The France 
country article notes that the effects of training 
actions are large, and should be considered not 
only in terms of direct return to work. Engaging in 
a training programme helps unemployed people to 
keep active, to enlarge their professional network 
by meeting new people, to acquire transversal 
skills and to regain their self-confidence. In this 
example, it is believed that, even if there is no 
direct link between a training programme and fast 
return to work, it certainly contributes to increase 
employability levels and reduce inactivity traps.

The short-term results do not always rep-
resent the actual picture, since participants 

(13) 

 The authors compare the occupational position before 
unemployment with the occupational position after 
unemployment in respect of the level of qualification. 
The empirical analysis is based on longitudinal 
data of further vocational training participants and 
unemployed non-participants from panel surveys 
collected in the context of accompanying research 
for the ESF-BA-Programme (supplement to SGB III, 
German Social Code Book III, from 2000 to 2008 by 
the European Social Fund).

in training actions initially have fewer pos-
sibilities to integrate themselves into the 
labour  market  (Saez,  2004).  For  example, 
evaluation results from Austria suggest that the 
re-employment  effect  of  training  measures  is 
rather modest in the short term: directly after 
participating in a training measure, only 16 % are 
employed (including subsidised employment). But 
this quota rises significantly in the following year, 
with the re-employment rate at 42 % one year 
after  completion.  In  general,  the  employment 
results tend to be more positive in the medium 
and long terms. Thus, it is suggested that evalua-
tion over the medium term is especially needed in 
relation to on-the-job training (Card et al., 2010; 
Kuddo, 2009).

Some  national  experts  identified  other  issues, 
indicating that the effects in terms of qualifica-
tion levels are also worthy of investigation. For 
example, in Bulgaria it was noted that the data do 
not provide any analysis of how often the same 
unemployed person goes on training courses and 
the subject matter of the courses. The ‘over-con-
sumption’ of qualifications is entirely possible: 
at the same time, this means that other unem-
ployed people have been deprived of access to 
vocational training (there may be the potential to 
pass through various successive training courses 
in connection with short-term subsidised employ-
ment, but not to secure sustained employment 
based on upgraded vocational qualifications).

Overall evaluation studies tend to be rela-
tively unsophisticated; few studies use an 
experimental design that measures a coun-
terfactual, and few take account of the net 
effect. Even fewer evaluations are able to 
tell us about the role of different elements 
in generating positive outcomes, or in rela-
tion to different sub-groups of unemployed 
workers. Furthermore, there is little information 
on the cost-effectiveness of training programmes 
(i.e. the cost-benefit for public finances). In gen-
eral, training can be a more expensive measure 
than other ALMPs.

4.2.2.  Overview of evaluation results

A recent report on a systematic assessment of 
71 impact evaluations of employment training 
internationally  (What  Works  Centre  for  Local 
Economic Growth, 2014) found that almost half 
of  the  evaluations  reviewed  (35)  had  positive 
effects; another third (22 evaluations) showed 
mixed effects (partially positive) while only nine 
studies found no positive effects of training and 
a further five studies found negative impacts. 
Many  studies  which  include  an  experimental 
design (i.e. comparing against a ‘control’ group) 

36

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionhave supported the view that training increases 
employment probability, including early research 
by O’Leary (1998), which showed that partici-
pants in retraining had a 10 percentage point re-
employment advantage over a control group at 
the end of the 1990s, robust to using different 
methods of calculation and different outcomes 
(Hungary).  A  report  in  Belgium,  which  evalu-
ated different types of exemption measures for 
jobseekers who pursue training, using a control 
group approach to test the probability of employ-
ment after 12 months (matched by region, age, 
period of unemployment, education level), sug-
gested that all training had a positive impact on 
reducing unemployment (ONEM, 2013). In Italy 
counterfactual impact evaluations are rare but, 
where implemented (14), typically show positive 
impacts, with recipients’ employment rates being 
10-15 percentage points higher than those of 
non-recipients.

It is clear that in many cases the training frame-
work for unemployed adults is considered gener-
ally to perform well, even though the absence 
of analysis of the counterfactual makes the net 
effects hard to identify, and the lack of follow-
up studies means there is limited evidence on 
the extent of permanent reintegration back into 
employment; plus the effects in terms of upskill-
ing workers are rarely measured. In broad terms, 
the results in the country articles which have 
captured the rate of employment of par-
ticipants in training in the period following 
training suggest that these can range from 
as low as around 20 % to as high as 80 %, 
depending on the nature of the programme 
and the target groups (and different time 
periods/measures used).

In  Italy,  the  National  Institute  for  Educational 
and  Vocational  Training  (Isfol)  established  a 
national framework to collect relevant informa-
tion to assess outcomes from ESF training inter-
ventions for unemployed people. The training is 
locally driven and leads to heterogeneity in course 
architecture. Six months and 12 months after the 
conclusion  of  training,  recipients’  employment 
rates vary from 20 % to about 61 %, according 
to the region under consideration; but the majority 
of regions (Tuscany, Piedmont, Marche, Liguria, as 
well as the Autonomous Provinces of Bolzano and 
Trento) have rates of between 40 % and 60 %.

It is hard to compare the relative success 
of different schemes because the outcomes 
depend on the objectives of the schemes 
and the issues faced by the target groups. 
In some countries the access to labour market 

(14) 

 In northern and central regions and specifically in 
Lombardy, Marche, Tuscany, Liguria, Piedmont. 

training seems to be rather limited, as training is 
provided only if the reason for not finding a job 
is the lack of specific knowledge and skills and 
if there is a demand for those skills in the local 
labour market.

4.2.2.1. 

Rates of reintegration into employment 
vary widely

The main training programmes for unemployed 
adults have been found to achieve rather high 
levels of employment in Slovakia (73 % of partici-
pants in the main training programme for jobseek-
ers (§46) were in employment at least once during 
the 24 months following the end of the inter-
vention) (Borik and Caban, 2013), and Germany 
(62 % of those who undertook training measures 
under the unemployment law (Social Code III), 
according to PES monitoring (Bundesagentur für 
Arbeit, 2013b). The latter scheme had a large 
share  of  long-term  unemployed  (31 %  for  the 
year 2013). Measures in France vary for differ-
ent groups: more than 50 % of unemployed fol-
lowing a training action entered employment six 
months after the training course in 2013 (similar 
results in 2012 and 2011) (15). The best results 
were for the AFPR and Preparation Operationelle 
pour l’Emploi Individuel (POEI), with a rate of 79 % 
(against 48 % for AIF and 37 % for AFC). For the 
Preparation Operationelle pour l’Emploi Collective 
(POEC), the proportion reaches 50 % (and 49 % for 
unemployed involved in Regional Council training 
actions).

Training interventions have emerged rather poorly 
from  evaluations  in  some  Member  States.  In 
Greece a series of studies (Kanellopoulos 2005, 
Efstratoglou, K. 2006, Efstratoglou A. 2007 and 
KANEP-GSEE 2013) on training for unemployed 
people (pre-crisis) suggested that the impact of 
training on enhancing employability is generally 
low. Recent results of detailed tracking in Bulgaria 
in 2014 were also disappointing: 47 % of indi-
viduals found employment after participation in 
training. However, it was short-term employment 
(a year or less), within the period 2011-2014. 
Moreover, the trained persons worked in low-paid 
jobs and most probably performed labour func-
tions that require low qualifications. It must be 
concluded that training was of no great impor-
tance in terms of changes in the employment 
positions of the target groups. Moreover, even 
where the system of training is considered to be 

(15) 

 IGAS criticised the Pôle Emploi on the study sample, 
which took into account only persons receiving 
unemployment benefit, so that a large proportion of 
unemployed people accessing training programmes 
were not considered. According to IGAS, if the sample 
had taken account of all unemployed people (including 
those not receiving unemployment benefits), the 
proportion would have declined from 50 % to around 
30 % of beneficiaries in jobs after training actions. 

37

working effectively, such as Hungary, because of 
the small scale of interventions or other factors, 
the overall impact of training measures was low.

A recent report in Hungary (Csoba and Nagy, 
2012) finds that much of the re-employment 
advantage of training is due to selection. 
Similarly  Sirovátka  et  al.  (2014),  drawing  on 
2010 data and using exact matching to construct 
the control group, show that the favourable posi-
tion in terms of job outcomes could easily be due 
to the changing nature of selection into retraining 
(conditional on demographics) during the crisis 
years. However the study methodology used can 
be criticised (16).

Galasi,  Nagy  and  Lázár  (1999),  in  a  pairwise 
comparison of participants in different ALMPs in 
Hungary, found that the advantage of training 
over the (contemporary) public works programme 
comes almost entirely from programme effects.

Recent poor evaluation results in fYROM have 
been associated with deficiencies in the informa-
tion on skills needs, low training quality, and the 
fact that the curricula for the training as devel-
oped by the VET Centre and the Centre for Adult 
Education  (CAE)  do  not  match  the  exact  skills 
required by employers (in future the training will 
be provided by verified and licensed companies 
(rather than secondary schools)).

4.2.2.2.  Different types of training show more 

or less value-added

Some countries have undertaken evaluations of 
the range of measures and offer comparative 
data on the implications for unemployment of 
training for unemployed adults. The advantage of 
this approach is that it can draw on the adminis-
trative data. For example, Hazans and Dmitrijeva 
(2013)  combined  State  Employment  Agency 
(SEA) and State Social Insurance Agency data 
in Latvia on the unemployment, employment and 

earnings history of all individuals both before 
and after training (enabling a rigorous counter-
factual methodology) to examine the effective-
ness of all the main types of programme over the 
period 2008-2011, including occupational train-
ing and non-formal education, as well as com-
petitiveness-promoting short courses. The main 
conclusion of the study was that all types of 
professional training and non-formal education 
programmes for unemployed people significantly 
improved the employment rates of participants 
— both soon after completing training and in 
the medium term. However, participation in com-
petitiveness-promoting measures was found to 
have only a small, but statistically significant, 
positive employment impact. The impact of train-
ing programmes on the wages of participants 
(as compared with similar non-participants) was 
found to be either insignificant or negative, and 
for participants of employer-provided training it 
was found that the wages of participants were 
lower than for non-participants or for similar 
participants in other programmes.

According to the BMASK (2014, 2013), one year 
after completion the highest re-employment rate 
from provision in Austria can be found for qualifi-
cation measures (17). The measures that achieve 
the highest re-employment were employer-based 
interventions — Labour Foundations (75 %) and 
the specific training programme FIT (81 %). For 
general  measures,  the  re-employment  rate  is 
moderate. Results from Italy confirm the relatively 
higher success of interventions which are deliv-
ered in a combination of training with other active 
labour market measures (mainly work experience 
and incentives).

Other studies also suggest that rates of employ-
ment  for  unemployed  adults  in  occupational 
training tend to be above the rate for competitive-
ness-promoting measures, although these results 
could just reflect the nature of the participant 
(distance from the labour market, rather than the 
effectiveness of the intervention).

(16) 

 The matching is based on demographics (though many 
selection issues remain open, including previous history 
of ALMP participation). 

(17) 

 However, no detailed data is published.

38

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionTable 4.4 Counterfactual evaluations on training interventions for unemployed adults

Country
Croatia: ALMP 
programmes 
implemented by 
CES in the period 
2009-2010

Evaluation method

Used matching techniques and 
compared the outcomes of 
participants with control group 
comprising unemployed persons with 
similar observable characteristics 
(ALMP programmes implemented by 
CES in the period 2009-2010)

Sweden: Vocational 
labour market 
training

Participants who entered the 
programme 2002-2004

Participants who entered the 
programme 2005

Ireland: Specific skills 
training 

Used a longitudinal dataset to 
assess the differential impact of 
various types of what used to be FÁS 
training programmes before FÁS was 
disbanded, relative to a control group 
of non-participants (categorised FÁS 
training programmes according to skill 
content) (18)

Slovakia: Main 
training programme 
for jobseekers 

 - Counterfactual impact evaluation of 
2011 data throughout a 15-month 
reference period

 - Calculation of net effect on 

public finances based on a cost-
benefit analysis (gross returns 
of participants minus returns 
of the state flowing in from the 
control group)

Spain 
(Madrid Region)

Key findings
 - Education programmes on average resulted in a negative 
effect on the probability of employment compared with 
control groups

 - Employment outcomes were positive for persons without 

upper-secondary education, persons who entered 
unemployment from inactivity (rather than education) and 
among persons who had not spent a very long period in 
unemployment prior to participation (Matković, Babić and 
Vuga, 2012)

Significant positive effects on participants, and the 
unemployment spell: time taken to get a job was shortened 
by over 20 %, irrespective of the type of participants and the 
course orientation (De Luna et al., 2008)

One year after the completion of training, a significantly 
higher share of participants in 2005 secured unsubsidised 
employment than did non-participants. However, the positive 
effect decreased significantly over time and was close to 
zero in 2009 and 2010. This outcome could also partly be 
ascribed to the variation in the number and composition of 
participants in the training (increasing share of long-term 
unemployed) (Gartell et al., 2013)
 - The analysis detects strong positive impacts on exits 

from unemployment for job-search training and both high 
and medium-level specific skills training (McGuinness et 
al., 2014a)

 - There was little consistent evidence to support the view 
that low-skills or general training significantly improved 
the short-term labour market prospects of participants

 - Shorter-duration training programmes were more 

effective for unemployed people, with the exception of 
high-level skills training, where there appears to be good 
results for more extended training durations 

 - Placement in the labour market is negative (jobseekers 
who participated in a PES training programme were less 
likely to find a job in the following year than those who 
did not). The negative effect is observable across all age 
and education groups (but tends to increase along with 
educational attainment), both for men and women

 - There are significant regional variations, but the results 

are strongly influenced by negative effects of the 
measure in Bratislava, which had the highest number of 
participants in 2011 (55 %)

 - The calculation of net effects on public finances arrives 

at negative figures even in a short-term horizon 
(Stefanik, 2014) 

Women and older people were less likely to find a job after 
completing a training programme. Unemployed receiving 
the unemployment benefit and those who enrolled in VET 
studies were more likely to find a job after a training course 
(University Carlos III, 2005)

(18) 

 The study found that over two-thirds of specific skills training was general or low skilled in nature, with medium to high-skilled training accounting for just 
20 % of total training. General training programmes were those that had no specific link to the labour market, and included courses such as the European 
Computer Driving Licence (ECDL). Courses such as the Introduction to Warehousing and Distribution were typical of medium-skills provision, while high-
skilled training included courses such as Computer Aided Design.

39

Evaluation method

Key findings

Country
Finland: Vocational 
training
fYROM: Active labour 
market measure — 
Training for deficient 
occupations

Measured change in employment 
probability and wages of the 
participants compared to 
non-participants 

Sweden: Vocational 
training (jobseekers 
with disabilities)

Used a propensity score matching, 
where participants in training were 
matched with a control group with 
similar individual characteristics, but 
not participating in the training

Vocational upskilling has been observed to correlate with 
good employment results (MEE, 2015c)
 - No significant effect was found either on employment or 

wages

 - There might be several reasons why the programme 
did not bring expected benefits: deficient information 
on skills; low training quality; and the curricula for the 
training as developed by the VET Centre and the CAE 
may not match the exact skills required by employers 
(ILO, forthcoming)

 - Regnér (2014) found that jobseekers with disabilities 
who participated in vocational training obtained a job 
sooner, had higher income, and a higher employment rate 
than jobseekers in the control group. During the period 
1999-2006, jobseekers with employment training had on 
average 8 % shorter unemployment duration 2 years after 
the start of labour market training. After 4 years, their 
annual income was 31 % higher and their employment 
rate 10 % higher than individuals in the control group. The 
outcome is dependent on the timing of training measures 
and the phase in the business cycle, the good economic 
conditions in 2003-2006 resulting in more favourable 
outcomes

 - Compared to participants enrolled in the training 

programme, more jobseekers in the control group got 
subsidised employment

4.2.2.3. 

Review of counterfactual evaluations 
relating to individualised models 
of provision

A  study  for  Belgium  (ONEM,  2013)  concluded 
that individualised measures achieve the high-
est employment share compared to the control. 
The group given the right to pursue individual 
vocational training were least likely to return to 
unemployment  after  training  (2.3  times  more 
unemployed  people  in  the  control  group  were 
unemployed after 12 months compared to those 
receiving individual vocational training). The next 
most effective measure was the right to return to 
education, leading to occupations in which there 
is a shortage of labour (1.58), and the right to 
pursue self-employment training (1.58) (19). The 
effects of the right to return to full-time educa-
tion, the right to pursue group vocational training 
and the right to return to other education or train-
ing were positive but less than the individualised 
measure (around 1.3 more unemployed without 
the training).

Evaluation  results  in  relation  to  the  ‘train-
ing  voucher’  scheme  introduced  in  Estonia  in 

(19) 

 With regard to individual vocational training, this 
finding is, however, tempered by the fact that 
the result is heavily influenced by the employer’s 
obligation to employ the trainee after the training, for 
a period corresponding to at least the period of the 
vocational training.

2009 have been very positive in terms of the extra 
benefits of participation in individualised training 
over and above procured training. A study by the 
Unemployment Insurance Fund analysis depart-
ment (Lauringson et al., 2011) focuses on two 
distinct time periods: first from May to September 
2009, and secondly from April to October 2010. 
The  study  is  based  on  merged  data  from  the 
UIF and the Tax and Customs Board. Propensity 
score matching is used to analyse the impact of 
training. The results indicate that participation 
in voucher-based training has a stronger impact 
on the future employment and income of par-
ticipants than has procured training. Six months 
after finishing training, employment among the 
participants in voucher training was almost 12 % 
higher than in the control group, compared to 6 % 
higher in the group that participated in procured 
training. In case of the 2009 sample, the employ-
ment rate of participants a year after complet-
ing the training was 10 percentage points higher 
than in the comparison group, and in the case of 
the 2010 sample it was almost 13 percentage 
points higher. The greater impact in 2010 can 
be  explained  by  the  change  in  the  principles 
of training provision (a move from wish-based 
service provision to needs-based provision). The 
cost-benefit analysis conducted on the basis of 
the 2010 estimations suggests that training has 
been a cost-effective measure (Lauringson et al., 
2011). Anspal et al. (2012) analyse the impact of 

40

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisiontraining from January to September 2010 using 
coarsened exact matching as a tool for analysis. 
The results of this study were in line with the UIF 
study: it was found that participation increases 
the probability of employment by 6 percentage 
points both 6 and 12 months after completion of 
the course. Also, the cost-benefit analyses confirm 
that training was cost-effective.

In Finland, the voucher approach has helped to 
even  out  the  regional  availability  of  provision 
and to engage a wider range of target groups 
(including immigrants). Only qualitative studies 
exist on the scheme but it appears to be effec-
tive. Immigrants and unemployed people have 
identified  positive  health  effects,  social  and 

learning-related experiences, and effects on their 
information-search and problem-solving skills.

4.2.2.4. 

Evaluation results related to content of 
training

Examples of the outcomes from different types of 
targeted content and country examples are given 
in the table below. Some programmes focus on 
developing basic skills, a sub-category being lan-
guage skills for migrants, while other programmes 
aim to develop certain key competences. Some 
programmes allow a degree of individualisation to 
meet specific needs, such as the key competences 
programme in France, described below.

CASE STUDY

Key competences programme, France (Aquitaine)

Short description and aims of the training programme: The programme must be in 
line with the careers of trainees, and content of training is personalised and adapted to each 
person’s professional ambitions. The programme can also tackle literacy issues. In Aquitaine, 
the programme is designed as follows: identifying training needs; measuring gaps between 
skills and the objective to be attained; designing an individual training programme; individual 
and collective workshops and evaluations. The programme is particularly directed towards 
persons far from employment opportunities. The programme allows beneficiaries to continue 
their job search, since there is a maximum of 18 hours of training per week. It can be slowed 
down or suspended for professional reasons. The objective is then to reach an apprenticeship 
or undertake skills training (like a ‘professionalisation contract’ or Pôle Emploi measures).

Target group: Unemployed people and especially the low-skilled unemployed.

Types of skills delivered: The ‘key competences’ developed include: understanding a text 
and improving one’s written expression, initiation to a foreign language, mathematics and 
basic skills in technology, mastering desktop tools and using the internet, and ability to learn 
and develop one’s skills. At the inter-professional level, a decree defining a Skills Base has 
just been published. Three training actions have been added to the training actions eligible for 
the ‘key competences’ measure: ability to work in a team, ability to work independently, and 
mastering gestures and behaviours for respecting hygiene, security and environmental rules.

Summary of evaluation findings: Results in Aquitaine in 2010 were very encouraging: of 
the 79 beneficiaries, 27 found a job after the programme and 50 continued with training.

In other examples, different types of provision 
are offered in combination and involving several 
actors. The experience in Sweden suggests that 
by combining training in the Swedish language 
with vocational training, and by involving sev-
eral stakeholders, the efficiency of labour mar-
ket training and the integration of immigrants 

into the labour market appear to be enhanced 
(see Sweden country article for further details).

In some EEPO countries, language training has 
been  combined  with  additional  skills  develop-
ment, as in the German example included in the 
table below.

41

Table 4.5 Some evaluation results in relation to target-specific content

Focus of the 
provision

Language 
courses

Target groups

Migrant background 
unemployed 
people (Austria, 
Sweden, Germany)

Results

 - A follow-up study in Sweden in relation to the ‘Swedish for immigrants’ 

measure for non-native jobseekers who are in need of training in Swedish (plus 
vocational skills in cleaning and servicing buildings, welding, personal assistant, 
retail, and kitchen and food service) reported that around 50 % of participants 
2010-2012 had obtained employment one year after completing training. By 
combining training in Swedish with vocational training, and by involving several 
stakeholders, the efficiency of labour market training and the integration of 
immigrants into the labour market appear to be enhanced. This model could 
also be applied for low skilled people, combining basic skills/key competences 
and VET.

 - The ESF-BAMF-Programm initiative (berufsbezogenen Sprachförderung für 

Personen mit Migrationshintergrund im Bereich des Bundes), launched in 2008, 
aims to link German language courses to further vocational training, and thus 
to offer professional or vocation-related German language skills. In addition 
to language skills, job-related skills are taught, such as communication in the 
workplace, mathematics, IT skills, job-search training. Courses last a maximum 
of six months. The programme is targeted at jobseekers (Social Code III and 
Social Code II). The labour market integration rate is 40 % — higher than initially 
planned (20 %) (BMAS, 2013) 

Basic skills

Jobseekers tested 
for poor literacy 
and numeracy in 
Denmark

 - An evaluation by Deloitte (2012) of the use of basic adult education by job 
centres showed that there is a great need for basic literacy, writing and 
numeracy teaching and for dyslexia education among unemployed people, but 
that very few will get a course and yet fewer complete it 

4.2.2.5. 

Evaluation results for employer-based 
models of provision

Evaluation results tend to be most positive 
when the training is well tailored to the job-
seeker’s potential and to employers’ skills 
needs (and when it leads to the acquisition 
of formal qualifications). Comparative stud-
ies of on- and off-the-job training (What Works 
Centre for Local Economic Growth, 2014) suggest 
that in-firm, on-the-job training is much more 
effective in achieving employment outcomes than 
classroom, off-the-job training. Indeed, on-the-
job training programmes appear to be among 
the best used and most successful programmes 
in several countries. Moreover, a trend towards 
work-based schemes can be observed in some of 
the recent programmes identified in the country 
reports (such as on-the-job training, placements, 
and internships with training), and it appears that 
these have been introduced with a view to trying 
to solve a fundamental problem of vocational 
training: namely the weak link between companies 
(demand) and vocational programmes (supply).

The evaluation evidence is variable, but there do 
appear to be benefits to the approach in terms 
of securing positions for unemployed people in 
companies. While few counterfactual estimates 
are available, the descriptive results appear pos-
itive. For example, statistics published by the 
42

Employment Service of Slovenia suggest that 
on-the-job training gained impressive employ-
ment outcomes in the last 5 years (2010-2014): 
nearly 70 % of participants found employment 
within one year of completing the training (20). 
In Ireland, the Jobseekers Support Programme 
(JSSP) upskills jobseekers in an enterprise-based 
environment, in order to increase their chances 
of finding employment: an evaluation of the JSSP 
revealed that just under 50 % of 2013 partici-
pants were employed by 2014, with approxi-
mately 16 % gaining employment directly as a 
consequence of the programme’s work place-
ment (Indecon, 2014).

It is difficult to compare schemes, since they may 
involve  very  different  target  groups  of  unem-
ployed workers. Schemes which are more pre-
paratory in nature are unlikely to get such good 
results as those for higher-skilled unemployed. In 
Estonia, the aim of participating in Competences 
for  Working  Life  (CfWL)  is  not  directly  to  find 
employment, but rather to move a step closer to 
the labour market. No employment contract may 
be concluded in the period of CfWL and labour 
legislation  does  not  apply  (Protseduurireegel, 
Tööharjutus, 2014). Within a year of participation, 
roughly a third of participants were continuing 

(20) 

 Some 22 669 unemployed participants went through 
the on-the-job training programme.  
Internet: http://www.ess.gov.si

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionin some other type of labour market measure; 
roughly  a  fifth  were  employed;  half  were  still 
unemployed;  and  around  11 %  were  receiving 
disability pension (Villsaar et al., 2012a).

Forthcoming results from France indicate that a 
mix-and-match approach to training and employ-
ment may pay dividends. The ‘professionalisation 
contract’ is a work contract based on being part 
time in a company and part time in a training 
centre (at least 150 hours). Evaluation suggests 
that 75 % of unemployed people return to jobs 
6 months after the training, and this measure 
has the best result in terms of insertion into the 
labour market (Fonds paritaire de sécurisation des 
parcours professionnels — FPSPP, forthcoming). 

Although the measures mainly apply to young 
people rather than adults, the proportion of adult 
participants has increased steadily). The asso-
ciated POE Collective measure mixes academic 
training and immersion in companies that have 
difficulty in recruiting for specific jobs. It is man-
aged  by  a  non-profit  organisation  for  collec-
tive training. The results are promising and the 
measure is not as costly as the ‘professionalisa-
tion contract’. Some 51 % of beneficiaries find a 
job at the end of the programme (mostly as an 
employee or as a qualified or unqualified worker). 
This might seem low, but it is explained by the 
initial profile of beneficiaries, who are mostly far 
from employment opportunities when they enter 
the programme.

Table 4.6 Review of evidence in relation to on-the-job training approaches

Scheme

Estonia: Work practice

Form of workplace training meaning that 
most of the training time is spent in the 
workplace (21). Work practice can last up 
to 4 months. One supervisor may have as 
many as four supervisees. 

Evaluation results and key issues

Evaluation shows a significant positive effect on the employment status and 
income levels of participants (increasing the employment rate within one year 
from the commencement of practice by 8-15 percentage points) (Villsaar et 
al., 2012b)

Cost-benefit analysis confirms that work practice has been a cost-effective 
measure for society (Villsaar et al., 2012b)

France: AFPR

An allowance paid to companies that train 
one or several unemployed persons and 
then hire them on temporary contracts of 
6-12 months (22)
France: Professionalisation contract

A working contract based on being part 
time in a company and part time in a 
training centre (6-12 months or more for 
long-term unemployed or beneficiaries 
of active solidarity revenue: maximum 
24 months)
France: ‘POE Collective’

Collective operational preparation for 
employment (23). It mixes academic 
training and immersion in companies that 
have difficulty in recruiting to specific 
jobs 

The employment effect is negative in the first few months of practice, which is 
probably the result of the so-called ‘locking-in effect’ 
There are better return-to-work rates for beneficiaries on these training 
programmes: 54 % of trained unemployed persons found a job 6 months after 
their training (Pôle Emploi, 2014)

Concerns relatively few people: 34 000 beneficiaries in 2012 for the AFPR 

Evaluation suggests 75 % of unemployed return to jobs 6 months after the 
training, and this measure has the best result in terms of insertion into the 
labour market (Fonds paritaire de sécurisation des parcours professionnels — 
FPSPP, forthcoming)

Mainly applies to young people rather than adults: 25 % are adults — over 
26 years of age (the proportion of adults has progressively increased)

 - 51 % of beneficiaries find a job at the end of their programme; for 64 % of 

them, it fits the sector in which they have been trained

 - 46 % found a sustainable job (permanent contract or fixed-term contract of 

over 6 months) 

(21) 

(22) 

(23) 

 According to the data from UIF, 91 % of the work practices took place in the private sector, 5 % in non-profit organisations and 4 % in public sector in 2014. 

 The individual operational preparation for employment (POE Individuel) is the same measure as the AFPR, except that it is dedicated to longer hiring 
contracts: permanent contracts, non-permanent contracts or ‘professionalisation contracts’ longer than 12 months.

 The ‘POE Collectives’ are financed by the Joint Agency Licensed Collector (Organisme paritaire collecteur agréé — OPCA); at branch level it is OPCALIA. 
The OPCA identify companies which may be interested in the measure and design the programme by contracting with a training agency. The OPCA select 
candidates with the help of a Pôle Emploi local agency. They then arrange alternate training sessions and working time in a company.

43

Scheme

Slovenia: On-the-job training

Training by mentors provided by the 
employers (up to 3 months depending on 
type of job and age of participant)

Ireland: JobBridge National Internship 
Scheme

Participants in the scheme are offered an 
internship of either 6 or 9 months with a 
host organisation 
Luxembourg: CIE (contrat d’initiation à 
l’emploi)

Employment support contract offering 
a first professional experience to young 
jobseekers under 30 and registered at 
PES (12-month contract with possibility to 
prolong for a further 6 months) 

Evaluation results and key issues

Some 70 % of participants found employment within one year of training. The 
inclusion in training and employment of people from disadvantaged groups 
requires prolonged and systematic mediation, training in key competences that 
are of low complexity, inclusion in employment even if for a fixed period, but 
under the personal guidance of a mentor. Those far from the labour market quite 
easily accept and remain in employment after training at the workplace and the 
personal attention of a mentor (Annual Implementation Report OP HRD, 2013)
Some 52 % of participants were in employment a few months after the 
internship; the rates are substantially higher than comparison groups of 
claimants with similar age and unemployment duration profiles. However, 
this finding is based on descriptive comparisons, not on counterfactual with a 
properly constructed control group (Indecon, 2014)

Available data (2012) show that of 772 young jobseekers, 370 were recruited by 
companies — without the measure they would have remained in unemployment. 
For CAE, of 618 young jobseekers, 235 could be recruited in 2012 (Brosius and 
Zanardelli, 2012)

The tutor in a company or public actor plays a vital role, as does practical 
training (Brosius and Zanardelli, 2012) 

4.3.  Effective design features

The most effective measures appear to be higher 
value-added specific skills training and short-dura-
tion programmes aimed at enhancing claimants’ 
job search skills. It is hard to generalise, however, 

since the structure and design of the programmes 
will naturally depend on the aims of the schemes, 
the actors involved and the needs of the target 
group(s). At the same time, there are some generic 
features which are generally identified as being 
part of an effective approach, as discussed here.  

Key policy messages

Regarding effective design features of training programmes, the review has found 
evidence that:

•  Member States are increasingly linking training for unemployed adults to current and future 
employment opportunities, through customized schemes involving employers or using labour 
market forecasts.

•  The ‘matching approach’ places the unemployed person in a real vacancy but does not neces-

sarily lead to the person’s sustainable return to employment over time.

•  A key issue in the design process is affording sufficient flexibility for adapting programmes 

to local needs/trends, reflecting local labour market intelligence.

•  Having training as part of an individual action plan (IAP) enhances tailoring of provision, allows 
the application of sanctions for non-participation and gives opportunities for follow-up of the 
beneficiary after the end of training.

•  Having mechanisms in place for recognizing prior learning and validating learning outcomes 
(including non-formal and informal learning) is important, but drawing conclusions on how 
this makes a difference is difficult. 

4.3.1. 

Integrated ALMP

Adding value to other measures: EU/EC rec-
ommendations and Members States’ experiences 
suggest that training for unemployed people is 
more effective when it is integrated (or at least 
combined) with other active labour market instru-
ments (such as information, guidance, counsel-
ling,  work  experience)  and  financial  supports 

that act on the supply as well as on the demand 
side (benefits, incentives, allowances). Anti-crisis 
schemes  have  combined  active  and  passive 
labour market instruments. They tend to stress 
the employment outcomes and therefore give pri-
ority to instruments other than training, especially 
to work experience and to hiring incentives. The 
country articles clearly show that some training 
targeted at disadvantaged groups has supported 

44

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionother ALMP direct job creation measures. In some 
countries there appears to have been a specific 
approach of combining measures. For example in 
Bulgaria, funds for training of unemployed people 
were allocated mainly to programmes that also 
contain subsidised employment (with the purpose 
of achieving efficiency of the resources). Indeed, 
there is an argument to be made that job-creation 
measures need to be well designed and need to 
incorporate training in order to show some effec-
tiveness (Duell, 2012).

Some schemes suggest that locally based 
partnerships offer a good way of achiev-
ing  integration  of  measures:  For  example, 
evaluations of EU co-financed programmes in 
Hungary (Scharle et al., 2013) for two complex 
programmes, SROP 1.1.1 and SROP 1.1.3, targeted 
at disabled jobseekers and the LTU respectively, 
which  contained  training  as  an  element  to  be 
optionally mixed with others, found that they had 
a significant positive effect on re-employment 
chances, measured at different distances from 
the time of leaving the programme.

Integration  of  training  with  work  experi-
ence: Evaluations (including in Italy and Sweden) 
suggest that there are benefits to an approach 
whereby training for unemployed people is com-
bined particularly with work experience (some-
times with the provision of income integration 
benefits). In Sweden it is considered that the use 
of labour market training should be balanced with 
job practice (or at least job-search assistance) 
(see Swedish Public Employment Service, 2014b).

4.3.2. 

Profiling

Formal profiling of unemployed people appears 
to be increasingly common (in some cases man-
dated  by  law).  Profiling  starts  with  assessing 
a  person’s  readiness  for  integration  into  the 
labour market and aims to identify the meas-
ures that need to be taken in order to achieve 
labour  market  integration.  The  approach  to 
profiling and matching unemployed people to 
courses appears to vary in terms of the degree 
of  sophistication/type  of  profiling  undertaken 
and who is involved.

Profiling usually leads to the categorisa-
tion  of  unemployed  adults  into  different 
groups (the groups vary depending on the 
systems  in  place).  In  Serbia,  the  client  is 
profiled into one of the four categories avail-
able. The first category is clients who are eas-
ily employable on the open labour market and 
are  offered  basic  mediation  services,  such  as 
information and job matching and job fairs. The 
second  category  is  comprised  of  unemployed 

people who are employable on the open labour 
market,  but  who  need  to  be  supported  with 
active  job-search  services,  such  as  informa-
tion  and  job  matching,  CV  preparation  and 
interview  techniques,  and  job  clubs.  The  third 
category  needs  intensive  support,  including 
self-efficiency training, pre job-club workshops, 
job subsidies, public works, and programmes of 
additional  education  and  training.  Finally,  for 
the  fourth  category,  short-term  mediation  is 
not possible without intensive support, includ-
ing intensive individual counselling, assessment 
of working ability, and social and professional 
rehabilitation. Unemployed people who are clos-
est to the labour market are less likely to get 
an offer of training.

Profiling  has  implications  in  terms  of 
expertise  and  resource  for  the  PES  since 
it is done mainly through individual interview, 
undertaken by PES staff, although this could be 
supported by the use of tools, such as online 
self-assessment/job  interest  profiling.  Such 
assessments are part of professional counsel-
ling services ( 24) or IAPs.

Some  country  reports  make  calls  for  more 
investment  in  resources  and  tools  that  assist 
the employment advisers to shed light on the 
interests, personality and other characteristics 
of their clients. In Malta, for example, such tools 
would  improve  the  matching  of  the  training 
programmes  to  unemployed  people  individu-
als,  thus  increasing  their  effectiveness.  Such 
tools might be integrated within the existing IT 
system used by employment advisers.

4.3.3. 

Individual action planning 
and follow-up

Individual action planning (IAP) is increas-
ingly important. In many Member States train-
ing is generally part of an IAP in which, after a 
profiling by PES or accredited operators, several 
ALMP services are combined together with the 
provision of income integration benefits. Effective 
action planning is helpful to ensure services are 
provided based on the individual needs of unem-
ployed people, especially where there is opportu-
nity for matching to other provision (i.e. taking into 
account the specific hindrances that individuals 
face). In some cases an IAP is a requirement by 
law (e.g. in Serbia in accordance with the law, 
jobseekers are entitled to an interview to define 
an individual action plan within 90 days of regis-
tering with the PES).

(24) 

 Special diagnostic services (skill audits) may be 
offered to jobseekers as part of professional 
counselling; however, their use is limited (European 
Commission, 2014). 

45

An individual action plan provides a frame-
work for several ALMP services to be com-
bined together, including with the provision 
of income integration benefits. The use of 
training interventions within the broader frame-
work of individual action plans has several impor-
tant advantages:

• 

It is an opportunity for tailoring of provision: in 
Italy, for example, the content and duration of 
training depend on the initial individual profil-
ing carried out by PES or equivalent operators;

•  Furthermore, as a tool for supporting participa-
tion in training measures the approach can be 
linked to sanctions: failure to comply with the 
Individual Action Plan including participation 
in ALMP measures such as training as agreed 
may lead to the termination of the payment 
of unemployment benefits. In Spain for exam-
ple, if the jobseeker refuses to participate in a 
training course without a justified reason, the 
unemployment benefit may be temporarily or 
definitely suspended;

• 

• 

It provides a framework for matching different 
schemes/supports: integrated approaches are 
increasingly common within the framework 
of individual action plans. In Austria, the most 
successful training programmes are those that 
follow an integrated approach by combining 
several steps — from vocational orientation, 
through vocational training and education, to 
active job search and continuous support dur-
ing all phases of the programme (an example 
of such an integrated approach is the system 
of Labour Foundations);

It provides an opportunity for follow-up: the 
last step is to follow up beneficiaries after the 
end of their training programme and build a 
link  between  new  skills  acquired  and  the 
labour market. This is possibly a key point of 
intervention to be addressed (at that stage, 
unemployed people appear to be mostly left 
alone, even though it is the key step condi-
tioning access to work). Research in Belgium 
by De Rick and De Cuyper (2014) concluded 
that support for job search (information on 
the benefits of employment, information on 
possible positions and jobs, help in applying 
and contacting employers) must necessarily 
complete the training for those who need it.

The  drawing-up  of  individual  action  plans  is 
designed to speed up the activation process and 
to better focus measures, and the evidence sug-
gests that early intervention helps measures to be 
more effective in preventing unemployed people 
from becoming long-term unemployed by improv-
ing referral to the ‘right’ ALMP.

4.3.4.  Maximising the benefits of self-
selection by workers/individuals

A comprehensive overview of ALMPs in Hungary 
(Frey,  2011)  indicates  the  importance  of  self-
selection and an interesting outcome of it: re-
employment  rates  are  higher  in  the  case  of 
‘accepted’  programmes  that  were  picked  by 
the client.

In some countries there seems to be a trend 
towards an increased focus on self-selection 
of provision that supports individual choices, 
and this has implications for the individu-
alisation and flexibility of the provision on 
offer. Recent developments in this area were note 
in AT, DK, SK and RS:

•  Austria: Since 2014 the process for the selec-
tion of training courses has been undergo-
ing  a  fundamental  change,  whereby  it  is 
considered  a  success  when  an  appropriate 
training measure is selected collaboratively 
between the PES counsellor and unemployed 
people person, instead of through PES unilat-
eral recommendation.

•  Denmark: Reform to both the content and the 
organisation of ALMP targeted at the insured 
unemployed  has  focused  on  allowing  more 
flexible  assistance  to  the  individual  unem-
ployed, based on dialogue with the job centre.

•  Slovakia:  A  new  PES  training  project  based 
on the use of training vouchers (RE-PAS) was 
launched in October 2014. The project offers 
financial  support  to  jobseekers  who  may 
choose the training course and provider they 
want and apply for the selected requalifica-
tion at the labour office. It is expected that 
10 000 jobseekers will be re-trained by the 
project, while initial performance data will be 
available in mid-2015.

Self-selection of courses by participants needs 
to be underpinned by good information on provi-
sion, and usually the provision would need to be 
licensed or certified in some way to be covered by 
PES intervention. Procedures are probably influ-
enced  by  eligibility  factors.  For  example,  self-
chosen approaches tend to apply where there is 
more of a general right to training.

4.3.5.  Validation of prior learning

As already expressed in the existing literature 
(Cedefop,  2013),  ensuring  recognition  of  prior 
learning  and  validation  of  learning  outcomes 
is particularly relevant for low-qualified adults, 
because learning often happens outside formal 

46

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisioneducation. The European guidelines for validat-
ing non-formal and informal learning (Cedefop, 
2009a and forthcoming update) and the Council 
recommendation on the validation of non-formal 
and informal learning (Council of the EU, 2012) 
could serve as a basis for developments.

2008 to 2012), nearly the same proportion as is 
observed for unemployed people receiving benefit 
allowances in a Pôle Emploi survey. According to 
the Ile de France regional council survey, follow-
ing a certificated training course and obtaining a 
diploma is a factor that influences return to work.

Recognition of prior learning is seen as a 
priority in assisting low-skilled unemployed 
people  in  Portugal,  Romania,  Finland  and 
Spain, while a new system for the validation of 
non-formal and informal learning is under devel-
opment in fYROM. In Romania, a crisis measure 
in 2013 saw a new form of upskilling in the form 
of certification of non-formal and informal skills 
and qualifications. These may be certified freely 
for any individual registering with the PES, fol-
lowing a process of assessment done by the local 
employment services (fully funded by the UIF). 
In Finland, adult vocational education is mainly 
organised around a competence-based qualifica-
tions system, which does not include any obliga-
tory courses (in principle) but is rather based on 
recognising prior learning. Also in Spain, courses 
usually  relate  to  the  acquisition  of  a  diploma 
which accredits a certain level of qualification 
included in the common national catalogue of 
professional qualifications. The courses are articu-
lated through competence units that are in turn 
integrated by different training modules with the 
aim of facilitating the partial accreditation of the 
training received.

4.3.6. 

Certification of training

Training which leads to certification, if not 
formal qualifications, is generally consid-
ered  a  good  thing  to  show  participants’ 
achievements in a way that has some last-
ing benefit. There appears to be a trend towards 
certification of training: for example in Romania, 
recently provisions have expanded and diversi-
fied as they also include the certification of skills 
acquired informally or non-formally.

Recent debates in France suggest that achieving 
qualifications from training could help with sus-
tainable return to employment, maintaining and 
developing employability and security for career 
paths. Each of the 22 regional councils in main-
land France has designed its own training actions, 
with pre-skills training and skills training. In the 
case of the biggest French region, Ile de France, 
90 % of beneficiaries obtain their certificate at the 
end of the training courses — a very good result, 
considering the fact that more than 55 % followed 
the first-level certificate of vocational training. 
Furthermore, 50 % of beneficiaries involved in the 
Ile de France regional programme were in a job 
6 months after the training (average results for 

Use of certified training is also a means of 
tackling issues of training quality. In Denmark, 
for  example,  there  appears  to  be  increasing 
awareness  that  many  of  the  programmes  for 
unemployed adults which were labelled educa-
tion and training lacked quality and did not equip 
participants with the skills that were relevant in 
regaining a foothold in the labour market. The aim 
of reforms of the provision is to improve access 
to regular education and training for unemployed 
people, and to provide them with formal compe-
tences that are accepted by employers.

The issue of certification is likely to link to 
broader debates on qualifications and life-
long learning, and the qualifications frame-
works that are in place. Provision of training for 
unemployed people in the UK is underpinned by 
the broader objective of raising skills to at least 
Level 2 on the National Vocational Qualifications 
(NVQ) framework. The sector-based work acad-
emies measure in the UK is a new initiative that 
is designed to attract employers to unemployed 
jobseekers. The training element is agreed with 
the employer: for example, it might be to develop 
health and safety or IT skills, or something more 
specific to the needs of the employer. These will 
be short periods of training, delivered by a range 
of providers (though similar in range to those 
delivering other programmes). However, the train-
ing undertaken will normally be in units on the 
Qualification and Credit Framework, and so will 
have some currency in the wider labour market. 
In view of the frameworks in place, opportunities 
exist for fairly easy insertion of certification of a 
wide range of types of new provision within the 
NVQ framework, although these advantages may 
not be realised in other countries. In the Czech 
Republic, regional DLO reports imply that almost 
all participants conclude the programmes suc-
cessfully (i.e. get a certificate, as required by the 
Employment Act), often linked to the skills/position 
types listed in the National Register of Vocational 
Qualifications. However, retraining courses do not 
lead to a vocational or other education degree, 
although unemployed people can participate in 
a series of courses and then apply for a degree 
from  an  education  institution  using  the  series 
of certificates.

The  changes  are  occurring  in  the  context  of 
increasing concern about structural unemploy-
ment and adoption of a more global approach 
to training unemployed people, with a shift from 

47

orienting the provision simply around the return 
to employment as quickly as possible in non-occu-
pied jobs. This reflects a concern to take account 
of other key issues: tackling structural skills short-
ages; raising the general skills levels; sustainable 
return to employment; maintaining and develop-
ing employability; and security for career paths.

4.3.7. 

Sectorally oriented provision

Evaluations show that employment rates from 
training vary depending on the sector focus 
of the provision, although it is hard to gen-
eralise, given that the results will depend 
on  local  labour  market  factors.  As  might 
be expected, the sectors chosen as a focus for 
training for unemployed people tend to be those 
considered important to future economic develop-
ment. For example, in Italy, courses delivered by 
ITS cover six technology areas that are strategic 
for the development of the country (energy, sus-
tainable mobility, new-life technologies, new tech-
nology for Made in Italy, technology for cultural 
heritage activities, ICT). However, although the 
initiative is on a relatively large scale, no evalu-
ation results are yet forthcoming.

Results  from  evaluations  show  the  benefits 
of training for occupations with the most 
vacancies: for example, in Latvia the top per-
forming occupational programmes in terms of 
finding a job within 6 months of completing train-
ing in 2013 were welder and logistic worker, with 
employment rates in excess of 50 %. In terms of 
non-formal education, programmes that lead to 
the award of a licence to drive commercial and 
industrial vehicles have the highest employment 
rates — typically in excess of 40 %. In Germany, 
within the vocational further training of unem-
ployed people scheme, a few subject areas clearly 
dominate in terms of job outcomes: professions 
related  to  elderly  care,  clerks  in  management 
and business organisation, body care and related 
occupations, traffic systems and logistics, vehicle 
drivers, computer sciences and ICT professions 
education and social occupations (Bundesagentur 
für Arbeit, 2014c).

At  the  same  time,  schemes  which  provide 
generic  skills  that  are  relevant  to  many 

sectors  have  attracted  recent  attention, 
where there is an employer-based aspect. 
Examples  include  the  Momentum  Programme 
in  Ireland,  launched  in  December  2012 as  an 
initiative  designed  to  provide  labour  market-
relevant  training  to  6 500 LTU  claimants  (25). 
Such  programmes  include  on-the-job  train-
ing  in  the  form  of  work  experience  modules, 
as  well  as  the  development  of  the  workplace 
skills  to  obtain  and  retain  employment.  The 
courses  focus  on  growth  areas  such  as  ICT, 
digital media, health care and social services, 
the green economy, food processing and sales 
and  marketing.  However  evaluations  of  such 
schemes are still awaited.

Evidence from Austria, Ireland and the Netherlands 
suggests that schemes which are targeted at spe-
cific disadvantaged groups and occupations tend 
to perform better in evaluations than large-scale 
general schemes. In Cyprus, training as carers 
for patients and older individuals may provide 
good employment outcomes for unemployed indi-
viduals in the hospitality industry and if train-
ing in these areas is promoted, it would support 
economic objectives. Similarly, in Malta, the VET 
award  in  childcare  comes  at  a  time  when  the 
government has announced a major expansion 
of childcare facilities (mainly attracting mature 
unemployed/inactive women).

Having  a  sector  focus  has  proved  to  be 
particularly useful in relation to boosting 
outcomes for certain disadvantaged groups, 
such as older workers and disabled people 
(Regnér, 2014). Jobseekers with disabilities who 
participated in vocational training obtained a job 
sooner, had higher incomes, and a higher employ-
ment rate than jobseekers in the control group. 
Vocational training had the most significant posi-
tive effects for jobseekers with disabilities and a 
low level of educational attainment. However, the 
result depends on the business cycle and the level 
of unemployment.

The  active  labour  market  policy  interventions 
for re-employment and requalification of unem-
ployed people (2011) in Italy’s Veneto region is 
highlighted below because it shows the benefits 
of integrating a range of measures for unem-
ployed people. 

48

(25) 

 The courses are offered free to study part-time or 
full-time and are aligned to the National Framework of 
Qualification (NFQ) at levels 3-6 or to another industry-
required certification within the sector. The duration of 
the projects varies from 11 to 45 weeks. Education and 
training providers from both the private and the public 
sectors are offering Momentum programmes in over 
80 locations nationwide. 

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionCASE STUDY

Active Labour Market Policy Interventions for re-employment and re-qualification of 
unemployed (26) (2011), Italy (Veneto region)

Short description and aims of the training programme: Several instruments of active labour 
market policy have been implemented in an integrated manner throughout this programme 
(mainly training, income integration benefits schemes for unemployed and employment incen-
tives, but also guidance and counselling). Training consisted of short (40-50 hours on average) 
and specific professionalising courses, aimed at supporting recipients to reskill in their own 
occupation/sector or in a different one (with real possibility of employment).

Target group: Registered unemployed 25-64 year olds, 50 % of whom had ISCED level 1-2 quali-
fications. Almost 22 000 participants in 2011

Duration of programme: From 40-50 to 150-200 hours, depending on the number of courses 
attended and on the overall combination of services individually delivered

Funding source and total budget (share of EU funding, if applicable): European Social 
Fund, Veneto Region Operational Programme 2007-2013, Employability Priority, almost EUR 
28 million allocated (2011)

Types of skills delivered: Different technical and professional skills depending on sector/
branch or occupation involved; skills are developed at various levels (from basic to excellent) 
depending on recipients’ profile and occupational destination

Actors involved in the provision of training and their role: Accredited private and public 
vocational training organisations selected through a regional call and on the basis of projects 
coherent with ESF programming indications and priorities

Summary of evaluation findings: Employment rate after 12 months following conclusion of 
recipients’ training is about 68 %, without significant differences for gender and citizenship, but 
with a 10 percentage point increase compared to the situation at the end of 6 months.

Policy lessons: The combination of training and other active labour market instruments results 
in better support for unemployed people looking for a new occupation; coherence between train-
ing content and the real employment opportunities in a company or sector, although not easy to 
achieve, helps to produce positive employment outcomes; short and specific training, if based 
on sound analysis of needs, results in better individual employment chances for beneficiaries. 

(26) 

 For further details, see www.venetolavoro.it, www.regione.veneto.it/web/Formazione/attivita-fse

49

4.4.  The role of the ESF

Key policy messages from the EEPO country articles, related 
to the role of ESF in supporting unemployed adults include:

ESF has bolstered and extended training during the crisis and has helped build capac-
ity to work with low-skilled unemployed adults

•  The ESF has bolstered the availability of training provision, particularly in countries where 

allocated national funds were limited.

•  During the economic downturn, the ESF has also played a role in extending or re-orientating 

some types of provision to include preventative approaches.

•  ESF could be used to fill gaps in provision, e.g. supporting training activities in micro and 
small enterprises, where training needs are significant and training can have a real impact 
on labour productivity.

•  ESF funding is associated with diversifying training participation and, related to this, the type 

and nature of the available provision.

•  Regarding disadvantaged groups, there is country-specific evidence that the ESF has con-
tributed to capacity building by increasing PES capacity, reinforcing conditions for national 
certification of qualification courses, and setting up new bodies and systems.

•  The ESF is helping the development of evaluation frameworks for training measures in sev-

eral countries.

•  Related to the role of the ESF is the issue of the sustainability of training provision if/when 

ESF funds run out. 

Existing research (Ecorys, 2011) finds that initial 
skills assessment for low-skilled jobseekers engag-
ing in ESF provision appears common, the intention 
being to ensure that individuals can be referred to 
provision that matches their individual skills devel-
opment needs. Development of ‘life skills’, includ-
ing those relating to confidence or communication 
skills, was also found to be an important aspect 
to tailoring provision alongside the development 
of basic skills or sector specific qualifications. The 
evaluation found that the most direct and largest 
impact that ESF has had on low skilled people is 
in providing them with better qualifications and 
improved ‘work related skills’. ESF has funded an 
array of projects which this target group have taken 
up to enhance participants’ skills and qualifications, 
with the overall goal of either helping them to enter 
into employment or progress in their current job.

In terms of ESF helping this group to gain a quali-
fication, the UK Cohort Survey shows that 67 % 
of those participants with no prior qualifications 
(the closest proxy for the low skilled) achieved a 
qualification through their participation. As well as 
providing participants with formal qualifications, 
ESF has also impacted on this group by raising 
their skills levels in general.

Funding through the ESF has supported the 
training of adults in the period of economic 
crisis  in  countries  where  national  funds 
allocated  to  such  training  were  limited. 
In  Bulgaria,  for  example,  the  ESF  has  largely 
exceeded  state  funding,  although  resourcing 
issues  have  meant  that  there  was  still  only  a 
partial  implementation  of  the  range  of  train-
ing  interventions  envisaged  in  the  legislation 
and the annual employment plans. Similarly in 
Greece, the role of the ESF in co-financing training 
activities is important and should not be under-
estimated. This is particularly evident in areas 
such as training for unemployed people, where 
an impressive expansion has occurred in the last 
few years, based on ESF assistance. It was clear 
from the country reports that the ESF accounts 
for a large share of resources for some key pro-
grammes across Member States (e.g. in Slovenia 
the ‘on-the-job training’ measure is 85 % funded 
by the ESF). In Italy, ESF-funded training interven-
tions (mainly under the Employability Priority of 
the ESF Operational Programme) constitute the 
bulk of the training targeted at the low-skilled 
unemployed (27).

This section considers the ESF’s role(s) in train-
ing for unemployed adults, as highlighted in the 
EEPO country articles.4.5.1 ESF has bolstered 
availability of provision.

(27) 

 In the period 2009-2014, more than 
975 000 unemployed people benefited from ESF-
funded training, accounting for more than 55 % 
of Employability Priority recipients. Low-qualified 
recipients (ISCED 1-2, but not only unemployed) 
accounted for 55 % of total recipients. 

50

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionElsewhere the ESF is also seen as a key feature 
in the expansion of training provision options. 
For example, in the UK the ESF has meant that some 
funding is available for provision outside the main-
stream  programmes  (i.e.  Work  Programme  and 
Youth Contract). The Skills Support for unemployed 
people is an example of this, financed through the 
Skills Funding Agency (using ESF) (although still 
restricted to registered unemployed claiming bene-
fits, which account for less than half the total unem-
ployed, and with a relatively small budget). Clients 
are routed through Job Centre Plus to a network of 
providers across England, many of which are public 
sector colleges of further education or consortia of 
providers. In Germany, the Federal Ministry of Labour 
has announced plans to use ESF funding to increase 
ALMPs for the long-term unemployed.

It was also noted in some of the country articles 
that through the contribution of the ESF, unem-
ployed people receive access not only to training, 
but also to participation in innovative training 
forms (for each country context). For example, 
in Bulgaria, vouchers for training were first used 
with ESF support. The free choice of a training 
provider to be paid with the voucher appears to 
have stimulated the quality of training services.

During  the  economic  downturn,  the  ESF  also 
played  a  role  in  extending  or  reorienting  the 
focus of some types of provision to include pre-
ventive approaches to address the unemploy-
ment situation. Examples exist of where the ESF 
has enabled the expansion of schemes to new 
groups of at risk workers, as in the case below.

CASE STUDY

Training in the context of short-term allowance (Kurzarbeitergeld), Germany

Short description: The Bundesagentur für Arbeit’s short-time working allowance in qualification 
measure was expanded, in the context of the economic crisis, to recipients of business cycle and 
seasonal short-time working allowance, assisting recipients to participate in a training measure 
during slack periods. The ESF contributed subsidies of EUR 125 million for 2007-2013.

Summary of evaluation findings: This measure was widely used in the context of the eco-
nomic crisis, and an evaluation shows that between 2008 and 2012 about 172 000 short-term 
workers took part in an ESF-financed training measure (31 000 received transfer short-term 
work allowances and 172 000 received business cycle-related short-term work allowance) (ISG, 
2013). Training courses included, for example, vocational training (e.g. training in specific tech-
nical areas), IT skills, social skills such as team work, skills in work organisation and business 
administration, language training. About 80 % of participants in 2009 were still employed by the 
same company in 2010 (ISG, 2013). In 2011, about 90 % of them were employed in the regular 
(non-subsidised) labour market. The success of the measure is linked to the effectiveness of 
short-term working in stabilising employment relationships during the crisis. 

The  ESF  is  likely  to  continue  to  be  a  key 
source  for  future  expansions  of  national 
training  provision. In Lithuania, for example, 
given the more generous ESF funding in 2015-
2016, the participation of unemployed persons 
in vocational training programmes is likely to 
double or triple (up to 15 000 persons and more) 
due to the increasing shortage of skilled labour 
faced by the growing economy.

There  is  some  suggestion  that  the  bene-
fits of the ESF could be further improved 
by  placing  greater  emphasis  on  meeting 
emerging priorities and filling gaps in pro-
vision. For example, in countries like Greece that 
are facing the challenges of economic recovery, 
there is an opportunity to put more resources 
into the areas that are lagging behind. Three 
such areas, for example, may be: mechanisms for 
early identification of skill needs; quality man-
agement; and guidance and counselling services 
for adults. The ESF could also have a role to 

play in supporting training activities in micro and 
small enterprises, where, according to the evi-
dence, training needs are significant and training 
can have a real impact on labour productivity.

4.4.1. 

The ESF has greatly increased 
the diversity of target groups, 
the range of provision 
and of training providers

ESF funding is also associated with diversification 
in the range of target groups included in train-
ing and, related to this, the type and nature of 
the available provision. In France, for example, 
training actions for other targeted groups such 
as disabled persons, prisoners or migrant workers 
are mainly financed by the state and regions, but 
mainly with the help of ESF funds.

The  ESF  has  allowed  for  the  development  and 
implementation of packages of support. In Romania, 

51

ESF programmes have greatly increased the diver-
sity of target groups; moreover the range of pro-
visions has been broadened, as they have also 
included information and counselling programmes, 
job placement, exchanges and other measures. 
Linking provision to employer-led elements has 
also been a feature in some ESF schemes.

Related to the above point is the role of ESF fund-
ing in providing opportunities for linking different 
types of interventions and putting in place more 
complex systems of support around unemployed 
adults — systems that meet their circumstances. In 
the case of Lithuania already mentioned, expansion 
of training is particularly envisaged for long-term 
unemployed persons, 50+ and rural unemployed 
persons. Better attractiveness of vocational training 
programmes will be sought by offering complex 
ALMP measures to specific groups of unemployed 
people (e.g. application of supported employment 
measures after training programmes; earlier, in 
Lithuania it was possible to apply only one measure 
to one unemployed person per year) and paying 
more attention to vocational/career guidance and 
counselling of unemployed people.

The  focus  on  disadvantaged  groups  also 
implies a degree of capacity building impact, 
where the ESF has helped:

• 

increase PES capacity (e.g. Bulgaria);

• 

reinforce national certification for qualification 
courses (e.g. Romania, Malta);

•  set up new bodies and systems: where the sys-
tems of provision for adult education and train-
ing were somewhat underdeveloped, the ESF 
has played a key role in the establishment and 
organisation of new quality assurance bodies 
or quality procedures (Hungary, Malta, fYROM);

•  channel funding to locally based delivery pro-
viders, and increasing the range of providers 
(e.g. Romania).

The ESF is helping to develop an evaluation 
culture and evaluation frameworks (e.g. HR, 

HU). In many Member States, the main obstacle 
to successful upskilling of unemployed people is 
the lack of evaluation procedures. The ESF has 
supported the development of new evaluation 
projects, including large-scale and sophisticated 
studies. For example, in Croatia comprehensive 
external evaluation of all ALMPs was initiated in 
February 2015, within the project co-funded by 
the EU funds. The evaluation is expected to last 
for 12 months, and it will be focused on measures 
implemented in the period 2010-2013. Results 
of the project should serve as a basis for further 
development of all ALMPs in Croatia, and increase 
their quality in future.

At  the  same  time,  there  is  a  sense  that  more 
should be done to ensure the collection of good 
evaluation  data  in  the  case  of  training  pro-
grammes, both for the interventions and direct 
outcomes, and the performance of the partici-
pants. The requirement of a thorough evaluation 
for every ESF-funded training programme would 
warrant consideration. The cost of doing so is 
known to be low, but the gain can be substantial.

Sustainability of provision needs to be con-
sidered. In light of the importance of European 
funding for enabling the development and imple-
mentation of much provision, sustainability of 
the provision becomes a key issue. For example, 
over the years, the Employment and Training 
Corporation  (ETC)  in  Malta  has  made  consid-
erable use of European funds to upgrade and 
organise its training courses, and while this sys-
tem has been beneficial in training unemployed 
persons, it has also meant that some schemes 
have not been reoffered once the funds have run 
out. This suggests that the national authorities 
need to be very careful to plan ahead and find 
alternative sources of revenue to replace finite 
EU funds. The issue is a general one if the co-
financed schemes are to become embedded in 
the framework of provision (rather than a nice 
thing to have or a way of meeting a specific 
need at a given point in time). It is particularly 
the case in countries like Malta, where the ESF 
has underpinned the development of the whole 
national approach to a large extent. 

52

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision5.  Challenges 

Regardless of what each country is doing and 
how they are doing it, there are some generic 
challenges or key issues that include:

•  Resources and funding: there is some sug-
gestion that cost issues may affect the nature 
and duration of schemes and makes prioritisa-
tion necessary.

•  The lack of coordination between policy 
areas:  national  policies  still  appear  frag-
mented, with insufficient crossover and joint 
policy thinking between the relevant ministries 
and national institutions.

•  Imperfect matching of unemployed peo-
ple to training: notable barriers to effective 
matching  include  high  caseloads,  creaming 
and supply-led approaches and the challenge 
remains how to get the role of the PES right, in 
order to recognise the existing learning, skills 
and  competences  that  unemployed  people 
have, how to profile unemployed people and 
the resources required for that.

•  Low  uptake  of  training  by  low-skilled, 
unemployed people, with the participation 
of older workers particularly poor: low uptake 
aggravated by lack of awareness of training 
provision, lack of incentives for participation in 
training, cultural issues and logistical factors 
(e.g. programmes not available continuously).

•  Lack of motivation and engagement of low-
skilled, unemployed adults in training: pos-
sibly influenced by poor experiences of schooling.

•  Challenges  related  to  procurement: 
lengthy tendering processes or decisions based 
on criteria that do not support quality provision.

•  Barriers related to evaluation: poor moni-
toring information, difficulties in setting up 
samples for carrying out counterfactual evalu-
ations, schemes based on IAPs being difficult 
to evaluate due to difficulties in isolating the 
training effects and the effectiveness of pro-
grammes being influenced by exogenous fac-
tors, such as the business cycle.

•  Uneven geographical coverage of training 
provision — influenced by rurality, transport 
and  accessibility  —  constrain  the  potential 
linkages into the general education and train-
ing provision (as opposed to PES-led provision).

•  Barriers related to the lack of effective 
mechanisms  for  skills  forecasting  that 
complement  policies  promoting  vocational 
training in general.

5.1.  Coordination between 

policy areas

Existing literature (Cedefop, 2013) has already 
highlighted  that  ensuring  greater  cooperation 
and coordination at policy level remains crucial. 
National policies still appear fragmented, with 
insufficient  crossover  and  joint  policy  thinking 
between the relevant ministries and national insti-
tutions responsible for education and training and 
employment policy.

As already discussed in Section 2.2 on governance, 
the current review has highlighted a small num-
ber of examples of governance (e.g. see Austria’s 
Labour Foundations example, described earlier) 
with integrated policy approaches encompass-
ing employment policy, education and training 
and economic development policy; but in most 
countries,  there  is  room  for  improvement  in 
this respect.

5.2.  Matching unemployed 
people to training

In general, the process of the selection of unem-
ployed  persons  for  inclusion  in  education  and 
matching to provision is performed in the employ-
ment services in local/regional offices. The sense 
emerged from the review that in most cases the 
main reason for this is to facilitate selection on 
the basis of a number of factors related to the 
employability of individual persons, and to direct 
those people to the type of education that is nec-
essary for their rapid integration into the labour 
market, particularly if there is a range of provision 
on offer (e.g. educational programmes, upskilling 
measures such as vocational training, retrain-
ing and professional development programmes). 
Evaluations show that, as with other ALMPs, in 
the case of training programmes selection is non-
negligible. Because of the performance pressure 
on the PES, often the caseworkers themselves 
select the more suitable candidates. Employers 
who offer jobs with training requirements and 
the ex-ante subsidisation of only those who actu-
ally take a specific job offer can further amplify 
this effect.

53

A supply-led approach is a barrier to effec-
tive matching. A notable barrier to the effective 
matching of participants to courses that was iden-
tified in some country reports was a tendency to 
a supply-led approach in some national contexts. 
For example, as part of the access to training 
programmes in Austria, the caseworkers in the 
regional employment offices are charged with 
making decisions on training in conjunction with 
unemployed participants; studies on the counsel-
ling process show that in about a third of cases, 
the assignments to vocational training courses 
were  taken  solely  by  the  PES  counsellor  (see 
Riesenfelder and Wetzel, 2009). This is mainly 
the case when there are training course places 
available that have to be filled. At the same time, 
although not a feature identified in the national 
reports, undersupply of courses could also be a 
possible barrier to taking up places on PES pro-
cured courses.

The constraints and opportunities present in terms 
of matching unemployed people with courses may 
depend on labour market conditions. In Iceland, for 
example, the Directorate of Labour was severely 
overloaded immediately after the crisis of 2008, 
with counsellors unable to cope properly with the 
number of those registering as unemployed. At 
first, the agency followed a policy of buying whole 
courses for their clients from education providers. 
As unemployment declined, this mass approach 
gave way to a more individually based procedure, 
with counsellors better able to take account of the 
specific needs of each unemployed individual. The 
decline in unemployment has also led to a more 
favourable counsellor–client ratio. Indeed, it has 
now become possible for the agency to assign a 
specific counsellor to each unemployed individual, 
which should increase the efficiency and quality 
of the service provided by the agency.

5.3.  Resourcing

ALMP measures account for a small proportion 
of the national budget in many cases (with train-
ing measures being a small proportion of ALMPs 
in some countries), and in some Member States 
their share may have fallen in times of auster-
ity. Provision of training courses has been con-
strained  in  recent  years  as  a  consequence  of 
severe cuts in the total budget for active labour 
market programmes.

unemployed  in  the  age  group  25+  enrolled  in 
training financed from the state budget decreased 
in  the  years  of  crisis  because  of  the  overall 
reduced financing within the strongly restrictive 
state financial policy in that period (and indeed 
this policy resulted in an overall reduction in the 
number of participants in active policies).

Resource  issues  also  affects  profiling  and  the 
action planning process. For example, in Slovakia 
according to the law, the decision about a rel-
evant training programme should be based on an 
assessment of the jobseeker’s abilities, work expe-
rience, vocational skills and educational attain-
ment, subject to a mutual agreement between the 
jobseeker and the counsellor. Nevertheless, given 
the shortage of PES staff and the resultant high 
caseload, it is questionable whether assessments 
can be done properly and can lead to well-founded 
decisions (28). In the Czech Republic, according to a 
2013 RILSA study (29), the practice of ALMP at the 
DLOs, including that of retraining programmes, 
is  focused  on  filling  out  the  requested  forms 
and procedures, and there is little time left for 
individual client consulting. Although staff num-
bers  began  increasing  in  2014,  about  half  of 
DLO officials deal with more than 20 clients per 
day, and some with more than 50 per day. There 
may also be little of an analytical background 
behind decisions on provider choice, at least not 
in any formalized way. DLO staff numbers started 
increasing only in 2014 and staff/client ratios 
across DLOs remain highly uneven according to 
anecdotal evidence.

5.4.  Low uptake of training 

by low-skilled unemployed

According to Eurostat, the general levels of adult 
participation in training in the Member States 
varies, including in terms of the uptake of train-
ing  among  unemployed  people  aged  25-64. 
Unemployed people participation rate in edu-
cation and training in 2013 was 10 % for the 
EU-27: 8.6 % for men and 11.7 % for women. 
Between 2004 and 2013, the total participa-
tion rate constantly increased in the EU-27 (from 
7.4 %), although this was not the case across the 
EU. In Italy, for example, participation decreased 
(from 7.6 % to 5.1 %). Within Member States, the 
participation varies between regions. Italy is a 
case in point: according to a report presented 

The reports of a number of Member States high-
light variations in provision year on year related 
to resourcing issues, and there is some suggestion 
that cost issues may affect the nature/duration 
of the schemes. Particular variability was noted 
in Bulgaria in relation to initiatives financed from 
the state budget: this meant that the number of 

(28) 

 The preparation of individual action plans (IAP) is 
optional. Until 1 May 2013, certain categories of 
disadvantaged jobseekers (e.g. long-term unemployed, 
elderly jobseekers) had to be offered an IAP by the 
labour office within 4 months of registration as a 
jobseeker and/or when 24 months of unemployment 
(LTU) had elapsed. According to Duell and Kurekova 
(2013), the preparation of IAPs is rather formal and 
typically lacks stronger training elements. 

(29) 

 http://praha.vupsv.cz/Fulltext/vz_353.pdf 

54

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionin 2014 by the Ministry of Labour, in 2012 the 
percentage  of  unemployed  people  attending 
education/training courses was highest in the 
central (8.6 %), north-east (6.6 %) and north-
west (5.7 %) regions, and lowest in the southern 
regions (5.4 %). In general terms, participation in 
further training tends to decrease with age and 
skills level (OECD, 2014).

The  participation  of  older  workers  in  further 
training is particularly low, according to OECD 
estimates on the basis of LFS data. Data from 
Spain suggest that participation by older work-
ers is increasing, but those with low skills are 
least likely to take part in training. In 2013, older 
workers  (aged  45  or  over)  represented  27 % 
of the total adult unemployed participants in 
Spain (4 percentage points above the 2011 level) 
(Ministry of Employment Statistical Yearbook, 
2013). However only 2 % of the participants were 
low skilled – half the proportion of low skilled in 
the total number of unemployed in 2011. This 
figure is surprisingly low, given that one unem-
ployed worker in six has low skills, according to 
the Labour Force Survey.

In Greece, the participation of adults in training 
for  unemployed  people  is  low  in  comparison 
with  the  other  Member States.  Furthermore, 
most  of  the  adults  taking  part  in  continuous 
vocational training activities are young and bet-
ter educated, and more likely to be male than 
female. In addition, certain subsections of the 
population, such as the low skilled, older people 
and those living in rural areas, are unlikely to 
participate in training.

5.4.1. 

Low propensity of low skilled 
to participate in training

The lack of engagement of the low-skilled unem-
ployed in training is a key factor, possibly influ-
enced  by  poor  experience  of  schooling.  Other 
issues include lack of awareness of training pro-
visions. Where the provision links to the national 
systems  of  education  and  training  above  and 
beyond PES-led options, awareness of courses 
becomes a particular issue. The country reports 
suggest that increasing use of IT may be helping 
to address this issue (for example, in Austria for 
the self-selection of appropriate training courses, 
PES customers find the continuous training data-
base on the PES website).

An issue that emerges from the Danish case is 
the weak motivation of the unskilled unemployed 
to undertake formal education, as they will often 
have negative experiences of the formal educa-
tion system, and therefore need special support 
in preparing for participation.

Whatever  the  reason,  in  general  people  with 
higher  levels  of  skills  are  much  more  likely 
to participate in training than are the lowest 
skilled  unemployed.  Uptake  in  Slovakia  has 
been linked to common barriers to education 
for  the  low  educated,  categorised  as:  cost 
(education too expensive for people to afford 
it); access to training (a mismatch of training 
schedules with the schedule of work, for those 
who want to continue training after returning 
to work); and personal barriers (age or health 
reasons).  Experience  in  the  Member  States 
suggests  that  this  group  needs  appropri-
ate interventions.

5.4.2. 

Incentives to train or sanctions 
for non-participation

In some countries, such as Austria, participa-
tion in training courses is mandatory and non-
compliance brings benefit sanctions. The policy 
aim is that every new entrant into unemploy-
ment should be enrolled on a course before the 
end of the first 4 months of unemployment. In 
Romania,  unemployed  people  either  follow  a 
training programme that is selected for them 
by a specialised counsellor in the employment 
office, or when they register with the PES they 
can enrol on a training course that is individually 
selected, provided that it leads to employment; 
unless they have good justification, unemployed 
workers cannot refuse enrolment on a training 
programme that has been selected for them by 
a specialised counsellor of the local employment 
offices without having their unemployment ben-
efit suspended.

However, in many Member States partici-
pation in training by the low-skilled unem-
ployed is not particularly incentivised. In most 
cases there are no special economic incentives to 
participate in training. For example in Sweden, 
participants in labour market training, as well as 
other ALMP measures, are entitled to a benefit 
equivalent to the standard unemployment benefit 
that is paid for only 300 days. Participation in 
training is also voluntary in the sense that income 
support is not strictly conditional on participation 
in training.

5.4.3. 

Cultural factors

Cultural issues may also play a part in people’s 
preference for different types of training, such as 
a lower preference for vocational qualifications 
and a higher preference for academic qualifica-
tions (e.g. the negative image of vocational train-
ing has still not changed in Greece, despite the 
crisis, which demonstrated that medium-level 

55

skills  and  vocational  qualifications  will  be  in 
greater demand in future).

Participation in training in some cases seems to 
reflect a desire by beneficiaries to extend the 
benefit  period  (e.g.  Cyprus,  Greece,  Romania). 
Individuals no longer entitled to unemployment 
benefit may remain eligible for other associated 
stipends and other types of support, including 
income that may have been offered by a particu-
lar training programme. The effect depends on the 
availability of benefits and any income criteria for 
receipt of these. For example, in Romania, groups 
of disadvantaged workers may benefit from the 
provision of training financed from the unem-
ployment insurance fund, as well as from other 
associated benefits, provided their income is less 
than the value of the social reference indicator. 
The indicator was fixed by law in Romania as of 
2010 and has not been modified since then: given 
the low value of the social reference indicator, 
only the poorest of the poor qualify.

5.4.4. 

Logistical factors

Some  logistical  issues  with  regard  to  uptake 
were also mentioned, depending on the nature 
of the provision. One difficulty worth noting is 
that  programmes  are  not  continuously  open, 
making it difficult for a person who becomes 
unemployed at a given point in time to proceed 
seamlessly  into  training.  In  this  context,  cur-
rent attention of flexible learning pathways in 
VET and adult learning policies are relevant and 
should take up this issue.

5.5. 

Issues related to public 
procurement rules

In the context of the need to work within the 
established  public  procurement  processes, 
another  obstacle  to  efficient  implementation 
of  training  might  be  restrictions  on  procure-
ment, especially if the regulations mean lengthy 
tendering processes or decisions based on cri-
teria that do not support quality provision. The 
challenge  is  to  ensure  that  the  procurement 
process  provides  the  best  quality  training,  is 
flexible  enough  to  respond  to  labour  market 
conditions, and is appropriate to needs (includ-
ing  allowing  for  tailoring,  if  required).  In  the 
Czech Republic, the Ministry of Labour requires 
the regional DLOs to use the practice of public 
procurement  to  contract  multi-year  packages 
of retraining services. The requirement results 
in  contracts  being  awarded  on  the  basis  of 
the  lowest  cost  (with  little  regard  to  quality 
or  other  criteria),  and  this  has  been  criticised 
by  the  OECD  and  local  practitioners.  Public 

procurement  processes  in  the  Czech  Republic 
often take a long time (because of legal uncer-
tainties  and  frequent  appeals  and  reruns  of 
competitions).  A  recent  report  (RILSA,  2013) 
argues  that  these  legal/administrative  obsta-
cles have curbed efforts to provide up-to-date 
retraining programmes for the large inflow of 
unemployed who entered unemployment dur-
ing the recent crisis. From this perspective, the 
2012 introduction of self-organised retraining, 
which is not governed by procurement proce-
dures, was considered a fortunate development.

In Slovakia, according to the OECD, provision of 
training programmes is hindered mainly by bur-
densome procurement rules and the low admin-
istrative capacity of PES. The COLSAF confirms 
that  lengthy  procurement  processes  and  fre-
quent  changes  to  legislation  have  resulted  in 
the cancellation of several procurement proce-
dures. In all, 19 out of the 46 territorial labour 
offices, many of which are located in regions 
with high unemployment rates, did not provide 
training to a single jobseeker in 2013.

5.6.  Evaluation challenges

A relatively large number of the country reports 
note  a  dearth  of  detailed  evaluation  of  these 
types of measures. Poor monitoring is a barrier 
to evaluation. The main reason, however, is prob-
ably the complexity of putting in place rigorous 
evaluation which includes an assessment of dead-
weight effects.

5.6.1. 

Problems of establishing 
the counterfactual

Even where there is relatively good monitoring, 
it is difficult to isolate the performance of any 
particular aspect of provision. The focus of evalua-
tions tends to be more on aspects such as student 
experiences and exit patterns. Information about 
dead weight and displacement effects, to what 
extent the courses did have an influence on the 
insertion rates, as well as the use of control and 
experimental groups, is relatively rare.

5.6.2.  Difficulty in separating out 

the effects of different measures

Schemes based on customising support for the 
individual are often difficult to evaluate, due to 
difficulties in isolating the training elements. This 
has been an issue, for example, in relation to the 
Work Programme in the UK. In this example, the 
problem of extracting information is also com-
plicated  by  the  fact  that  the  programme  is  in 

56

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionthe hands of contractors and the emphasis is on 
output-related funding.

5.6.3. 

Effectiveness influenced 
by exogenous factors

Economic factors may have a part to play in the 
success of training interventions, although the 
relative importance is contested in the research 
and some authors have suggested that the design 
of courses is a more important factor.

Some  evaluations  suggest  that  the  timing  of 
training  in  relation  to  the  business  cycle  has 
proved to be essential for the effectiveness of 
training measures. Training effectiveness might 
be affected by the business cycle for a number 
of reasons. It is easier to find occupations with a 
shortage of personnel in times of low unemploy-
ment; a large increase in training volumes during 
a recession can reduce the quality of the edu-
cational programmes; when there is high unem-
ployment, participants may be less motivated to 
acquire new skills through VET. Evidence from 
Sweden, for example, (Forslund et al., 2011) found 
that traditional labour market training was more 
effective than on-the-job training during periods 
of recession; this is explained by the fact that 
labour market training creates lock-in effects and 
is more effective when the cost of forgoing search 
time is lower in recessions. Interpretation of the 
results is complex: for example, employment out-
comes also need to take account of the variation 
in the number and composition of participants in 
the training, such as the higher (and increasing) 
share of the long-term unemployed during periods 
of recession, which could explain reductions over 
time in the efficiency of vocational and educa-
tional training.

Gartell  et  al.  (2013)  looked  at  changes  in  the 
efficiency of training over time in Sweden, and 
found a reduction over time in the benefits of 
training since 2005 (1 year after the completion 
of training, a significantly higher share of partici-
pants than non-participants in 2005 had secured 
unsubsidised employment; but the positive effect 
decreased significantly over time and was close 
to zero in 2009 and 2010). The author concluded 
that the efficiency of training is affected by eco-
nomic conditions, although this outcome could 
also partly be ascribed to the variation in the num-
ber and composition of participants in the training 
programme. A higher and increasing share of LTU 
during recession periods would largely explain 
the reduction in the efficiency of vocational and 
educational training over time. However, efficiency 
of training would also depend on how extensive 
the training was and how tailored it was to the 
person’s needs.

A recent report on a systematic assessment of 
71 impact evaluations of employment training 
internationally  (What  Works  Centre  for  Local 
Economic  Growth,  2014)  came  up  with  some 
interesting  conclusions:  it  indicated  that  the 
state  of  the  economy  was  not  a  major  factor 
in the performance of training programmes — 
more important were the structure and design of 
the programmes.

5.6.4.  Need for longitudinal element 

due to timescales involved

Overall, there is a lack of evaluation of the long-
term  effectiveness  of  training,  even  though 
studies have shown that the beneficial impact of 
training can become more evident in the medium 
to the longer term, rather than in the short term. 
It has been widely acknowledged in the interna-
tional literature that measuring the effectiveness 
of training measures after 6 months is too short 
a time period. One issue is that evaluations tend 
to be conducted in the context of specific time-
constrained programmes, as well as in the context 
of ESF programmes.

The main problem is in getting precise informa-
tion about the individual professional paths of 
unemployed persons. Yet it is the first condition 
in fully understanding the impact of measures, 
in identifying obstacles and their causes, and in 
designing adapted solutions. In some countries 
it is routine to merge data from different regis-
ters to create databases for micro-econometric 
research. For example, in Estonia UIF has devel-
oped a sound monitoring system and has built up 
databases on registered unemployed that can be 
used to conduct impact evaluations; it has pre-
pared one impact evaluation a year since 2010. 
In other cases, data linking provides a precedent, 
but impact evaluations are relatively rare (e.g. 
in  Latvia,  Hazans  and  Dmitrijeva  2013  is  the 
exception  rather  than  the  rule).  An  evaluation 
gap remains in many countries which have not 
overcome the issues of data linking.

5.7.  Uneven geographical 

coverage

In some cases, there is uneven coverage of train-
ing provision throughout a country. Issues of rural 
isolation, transport and accessibility play a part 
in this and location of provision becomes a key 
concern. Geographical issues of coverage could 
be most pertinent in relation to constraining the 
potential linkages to the general education and 
training provision (as opposed to PES-led provi-
sion). For example in France, the individual training 
support (AIF) intervention finances educational 

57

expenses for specific training projects which do 
not belong within the scope of collective train-
ing programmes usually financed by Pôle Emploi 
(which agrees to finance part of the programme 
if the training programme is coherent with the 
careers of beneficiaries). Importantly, AIF allows 
personalised training solutions, adapted to the 
needs and constraints of the beneficiaries and to 
their professional project. This scheme has been 
increasingly important, and between 2011 and 
2012, the number of beneficiaries almost tripled, 
going from 10 600 to 29 800. However, in some 
regions, access to AIF is not clear and stop and go 
practices sometimes occur during the process, due 
to administrative and financial issues. This creates 
insecurity and inequity for unemployed people.

5.8.  Skills forecasting

The  extent  to  which  predictive  approaches  to 
anticipate the growth of future labour market jobs 
underpin the PES provision of training for unem-
ployed people appears to vary, and this emerged 
in the country reports as a challenging aspect 
(i.e.  problems  associated  with  both  accurately 
predicting where vacancies will appear in future, 
and the issue of how this knowledge is translated 
into effective curricula which will meet the skills 
needs on the ground). Skills forecasting initiatives 
to discover future skills demand are increasing. 
Different approaches have included the use of 
committees or working groups of experts, and 
establishing labour market forecasting responsi-
bilities within the key labour market bodies such 
as the PES or training institutes. The results of 
such initiatives, however, are not always used in 
a systematic manner.

5.8.1.  Need to establish effective 

mechanisms for skills 
forecasting

Putting  in  place  mechanisms  for  forecasting 
and the translation of skills needs into curricula 
requires dedicated focus and mechanisms. For 
example,  in  2009  the  management  board  of 
Austria’s PES established a standing committee 
on new skills, which consists of PES representa-
tives,  social  partners,  training  institutions  and 
VET experts. Working groups in specific sectors 
(e.g. construction, tourism, electronics, energy and 
environment technologies, etc.) were tasked with 
drawing up curricula for target-oriented training 
programmes. Those are based on the commit-
tee’s knowledge of short- and medium-term skill 

requirements,  taking  into  account  underlying 
trends in the labour market, such as greening, 
globalisation and new technologies, and incorpo-
rating inputs from EU-level analysis of emerging 
competences and economic activities in selected 
sectors. In Estonia, the UIF has defined so-called 
priority training areas in cooperation with experts. 
In these priority areas, special study programmes 
are being worked out in close cooperation with 
employers,  trainers  and  professional  asso-
ciations, which are thereafter regularly offered 
(Protseduurireegel Tööturukoolitus, 2014).

The challenges are seen in the case of Greece: not 
much progress has been achieved over the past 
few years with respect to identification of labour 
market and training needs, although Greece has 
a  dedicated  agency  (the  National  Labour  and 
Human Resources Institute, EIEAD) for this pur-
pose. Recently, the Foundation for Industrial and 
Economic Research conducted a business survey 
exploring the issue of changes in local labour mar-
kets which yielded important information on skills 
in demand and human resources needs (IOBE, 
2011).  The  Hellenic  Federation  of  Enterprises 
(SEV) has also developed a mechanism for identi-
fying needs in relation to occupations and skills in 
eight sectors of economic activity that are of par-
ticular importance for the Greek economy: food, 
ICT, energy, construction products, supply chain, 
environment, metals and health. In this frame, 
SEV has identified 87 key occupations as likely 
to require significantly different knowledge, skills 
and abilities in the future. Many of the remaining 
social partners have also conducted their own sur-
veys of (sectoral) training needs, but the picture 
remains fragmented, as among other things, each 
survey relies on different employment growth sce-
narios and on different research methodology 
and definitions, and the way in which the results 
of studies are taken into account in the design 
of training curricula still needs to be improved.

The skills profiles required to underpin training 
curricula  are  becoming  increasingly  high  and 
niche-oriented as a recent Business Federation 
Luxembourg study (FEDIL, 2014) illustrates. This 
is  adding  to  the  challenge  facing  the  national 
framework to address mismatches in the labour 
market by training schemes: in effect, information 
on the specific skills needed now and in the future 
continues to be a challenge for policy designers.

Equally, matching training participants to what 
best fits their skills profile by developing indi-
vidualised training solutions remains a challenge 
for most PES. 

58

EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provision6.  Conclusions and recommendations 

6.1.  Conclusions

Training measures can support labour market 
efficiency and are an appropriate response to 
conditions of structural unemployment. However, 
training measures for unemployed adults are 
essentially compensatory interventions and the 
general education and lifelong learning systems 
have a greater role to play in underpinning effi-
cient labour markets.

In some countries, the context for the system of 
training for unemployed adults is fundamentally 
different from that of the recent past. Demands 
on the system tend to have increased amidst a 
climate of rising unemployment, and delivery 
may  need  additional  resources  and  will  need 
to become more effective than in the past. In 
this context training courses need to contain an 
appropriate mix of generic and vocational skills, 
and should better target the low skilled and the 
long-term unemployed, who are hardest hit by 
the economic crisis. Such courses are likely to 
be longer than the average labour market train-
ing measures.

Training measures are particularly relevant to 
address  structural  unemployment  conditions 
where skills mismatch is a key issue, and where 
skills shortages exist alongside high long-term 
unemployment. Furthermore, a learn/train first 
approach  has  been  recommended  for  people 
who have difficulty in finding a job in an eco-
nomic downturn, since the opportunity cost of 
time in training/education is lower during poor 
labour market conditions (OECD, 2010). Indeed, 
the  economic  crisis,  which  has  made  it  more 
difficult to return rapidly to employment when 
one becomes unemployed, seems to have been 
behind increased emphasis in training and edu-
cation interventions for low-skilled persons as 
part  of  ALMP  in  countries  such  as  Denmark. 
Other drivers are the high share of unskilled peo-
ple in unemployment and the forecasts of future 
imbalances on the labour market (i.e. growing 
surplus of unskilled workers and lack of people 
with higher skill levels).

to be those which: are tailored to the jobseek-
er’s potential; meet (local) employers’  skills 
needs; lead to formal vocational qualifica-
tions; are smaller  in  scale and targeted at 
specific disadvantaged groups, and on par-
ticular occupations.

Vocational  training  has  significant  positive 
effects for jobseekers with low levels of edu-
cational  attainment  (although  the  results 
depend on the business cycle and the level of 
unemployment).

An individualised approach is a factor in effec-
tiveness. Self-selection approaches also appear 
to  work  better  than  where  the  decisions  are 
made solely by the PES caseworker.

A  decentralisation  of  training  provision  from 
the national level to a wide range of education 
providers,  including  non-profit  organisations, 
enhances opportunities for tailored provision and 
practical training in the labour market. 

Integrated approaches and institutional coopera-
tion are important for those groups that face 
multiple  employment  barriers,  with  guidance 
playing a central component. Schemes which 
provide experience close to working life tend to 
be more effective. As indicated in the literature 
(Cedefop, 2013), work-based learning can pro-
vide close links between learning in different 
settings and scaffolding approaches to aid tran-
sition from training to work over time.

Employer involvement is also important, and the 
most successful schemes combine institutional 
training with practical training, mirroring a real job 
and workplace environment as much as possible.

Training  providers  not  only  help  learners  to 
develop knowledge, skills and competences and 
to gain working experience, but also work at the 
interface between learners and employers, and 
often function as labour market intermediaries, 
so this intermediary function of training provid-
ers should be supported.

Some design features have been shown to be 
beneficial in terms of increasing the effective-
ness  of  training  interventions  in  combating 
unemployment,  and  some  features  may  be 
especially important in preventing people from 
becoming long-term unemployed. Training meas-
ures with more positive evaluation results tend 

The system of individual action plans provides a 
useful mechanism for focusing the interventions 
most effectively and speeding up the activation 
process. Guidance and follow-up of leavers from 
training — especially those at a distance from 
the labour market and facing multiple employ-
ment barriers — is also needed.

59

6.2.  Policy lessons

From the practices reviewed in this work, the fol-
lowing policy lessons can be drawn:

Maintain a stable national policy to support 
training, with stable funding, notwithstanding 
the significance of ESF funding. Use of the ESF is 
important for the flexibility of provision and the 
development of specialised provision and is asso-
ciated with the widening of the groups covered. 
However, stable national policies are necessary, 
and  regular  financing  of  vocational  qualifica-
tions on the labour market needs to be ensured, 
so that adequate training opportunities become 
available for disadvantaged groups, leading to 
vocational qualifications.

In  terms  of  governance,  ensuring  greater 
cooperation  and  coordination  at  policy 
level remains crucial, since national policies 
still appear fragmented, with inadequate links 
between  the  relevant  ministries  and  national 
institutions responsible for employment policy 
and education and training. There is perhaps a 
role here for the national coordinators for adult 
learning, as part of implementing the European 
Agenda for Adult Learning.

Individualised measures achieve the high-
est  impact  so  individualised  approaches 
and  self-selection  need  to  continue  to  be 
emphasised. Self-employment training should 
also be included in the options where appropriate.

Training for unemployed people should aim 
to maximise the use of employer-based pro-
vision. This increases practical experience, rein-
forces profession-specific skills and increases the 
chances of being permanently recruited by a com-
pany. Involving more employers may require new 
reimbursement mechanisms to provide incentives 
for employer involvement.

Emphasis on training measures should con-
tinue  to  be  directed  at  occupations  with 
shortages on the labour market, especially 
for those farthest from the labour market who 
have most to gain from practical employment-
related skills.

Skills-need forecasting is crucial in improv-
ing training effectiveness and further work is 
needed to identify the most effective forecasting 
approaches and the practical mechanisms nec-
essary to translate forecasts into detailed skills 
profiles and curricula that can be used in training 
of unemployed people.

Ensuring  validation  of  non-formal  and 
informal prior learning and certification of 
learning outcomes is very relevant for low 
qualified adults, because learning often hap-
pens outside formal education.

Training measures have rarely been eval-
uated in a rigorous way that includes longi-
tudinal research over a reasonable timescale 
and  analysis  of  the  net  effects  for  different 
types of measures and for the different groups 
often  targeted  within  the  same  measure. 
Efforts  should  be  made  to  improve  the  evi-
dence base on the outcomes of the measures, 
especially for new measures, in order to ensure 
that there is scope to learn from the lessons 
of past actions.

There should be increased focus in moni-
toring and evaluations on the effects for 
different target groups. More systematic moni-
toring and evaluation of the effects of policies 
and measures on the employment and income 
of different target groups (low skilled, long-term 
unemployed,  elderly,  etc.)  is  needed  to  inform 
the adaptation of the type, content and format 
of  training  programmes  and  increase  train-
ing effectiveness.

60

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EEPO Review – Upskilling unemployed adults (aged 25 to 64): The organisation, profiling and targeting of training provisionHOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS

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The 2015 EEPO Spring review focuses on upskilling the unemployed aged 
25-64. It analyses what training is funded in the 33 EEPO countries for 
people of this age who have few qualifications or insufficient basic skills. 
The review highlights good practices, lessons learned and also explores how 
the European Social Fund can be used to help this group of unemployed 
people in Europe. It finishes off by identifying challenges in this field.

This publication is available in electronic format in English.

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