COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE EVALUATION Accompanying the document Proposal for a DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Decision No 573/2014/EU on enhanced cooperation between Public Employment Services (PES)
Date: 2019-09-11
Institutions: Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission
Subjects: EU employment policy, administrative cooperation, employment service, integration into employment

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  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 11.9.2019  SWD(2019) 319 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE EVALUATION Accompanying the document Proposal for a  DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Decision No 573/2014/EU on enhanced cooperation between Public  Employment Services (PES)  {COM(2019) 620 final} - {SWD(2019) 1350 final}  
 
 
This staff-working document presents the main findings of the evaluation of the Network of 
European Public Employment Services. The evaluation assesses the state of play and degree 
of  implementation  of  the  Decision  establishing  the  Network  and  evaluates  whether  the 
Network  has  fulfilled  its  legal  obligations  and  achieved  its  objectives.  It  also  draws 
conclusions  and  provides  for  lessons  learnt  which  can  shed  light  on  possible  future 
cooperation between European public employment services (PES) post-2020. 

1.  Context 

Decision No 573/2014/EU of the European Parliament and Council on enhanced cooperation 
between Public Employment Services  (‘the Decision’) establishes the European  Network of 
Public  Employment  Services  (‘the  Network’)  from  17 June 2014  until  31 December 2020. 
The Network brings together the PES of all EU Member States, Norway and Iceland and the 
European Commission. 

The  Network  has  been  set  up  to  contribute  to  the  European  employment  strategy  to  create 
more  and  better  jobs  throughout  the  EU,  as  an  integral  part  of  the  Europe  2020  growth 
strategy. The relevant chapters of the European Pillar of Social Rights, which was proclaimed 
by  the  European  Parliament,  the  Council  and  the  Commission  in  2017,  have  also  become 
guiding  in  setting  the  Network’s  initiatives  and  actions.  The  Network  promotes  cooperation 
among  PES,  and  helps  them  boost  their  performance  and  prepare  for  future  labour  market 
challenges. It implements an EU-wide benchlearning initiative (combining benchmarking and 
mutual learning), aimed at strengthening PES capacity, effectiveness and efficiency. It does so 
by providing a platform for comparing PES performance at European level, identifying good 
practices and establishing a mutual learning system. 

This evaluation is not required by the Decision, but in the interest of good administration and 
in  line  with  the  ‘evaluate  first’  principle1,  it  is  undertaken  to  take  into  account  the  lessons 
from past EU action and to better design future interventions after 2020. 

2.  Scope 

The  timeframe  for  the  evaluation  covers  the  period  from  June  2014  until  July  2018,  while 
some  of  the  evaluation  sources  (such  as  the  2018  annual  report)  cover  a  full  calendar  year. 
Assessment  activities  included  consultation  (public  consultation,  targeted  consultations, 
evaluation workshop, case studies), along with desk research and an external study. Targeted 
stakeholders included representatives from the 32 PES involved in the Network, relevant EU-
level  organisations  and  bodies  (such  as  EMCO,  EU-level  private  employment  services  and 
temporary  work  agencies,  the  European  Lifelong  Guidance  Policy  Network),  relevant 
international organisations (such as the ILO, OECD, the World Bank, the World Association 
of Public Employment Services (WAPES)), the PES Secretariat, contractors, former members 
of the PES Network or those involved with PES cooperation before 2014. 

1 https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-making-process/planning-and-proposing-law/better-regulation-why-and-

how_en 

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3.  Main findings and lessons learnt 

The evaluation covers the five criteria set out by the Better Regulation requirements, namely 
relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and EU added value. 

The Decision remains highly  relevant for PES. The Network’s objectives and initiatives, as 
outlined in Articles 3 and 4 of the Decision, encompass the key areas of PES responsibility 
and  provide  a  robust  framework  for  the  policy  and  concrete  activities  of  the  Network.  By 
providing a broad framework for Network activities, the objectives enable a flexible approach 
to addressing priorities for action related to labour market developments. 

The  evaluation  demonstrates  that  the  Network  has  been  effective  in  delivering  on  its 
objectives  and  initiatives.  The  Network  has  proven  that  it  is  an  effective  vehicle  to  support 
national  PES  in  the  individual  challenges  they  face  and  to  foster  European  cooperation.  In 
particular,  the  benchlearning  initiative  serves  as  a  fruitful  example  of  an  EU  shared  tool 
promoting comparability, learning and maturity among the PES. 

Some  Network  activities  are  difficult  to  quantify,  and  4  years  is  a  short  period  to  realise 
certain  gains  and  make  all  of  them  visible,  such  as  changes  in  organisational  culture. 
However, the willingness of PES to participate in benchlearning and mutual learning, as well 
as positive feedback from PES demonstrate that the Network outputs are highly efficient. 

instance  with  concrete  policy 

The evaluation shows that there is a good degree of coherence between the Decision and the 
EU  policy  framework  (for 
the 
recommendations on the Youth Guarantee and the integration of long-term unemployed in the 
labour  market).  No  duplication  of  policy  actions  were  identified.  The  Network  has 
demonstrated flexibility to target new topics, such as the integration of migrants and refugees, 
the  prevention  of  unemployment  and  skills  shortages.  The  Network  also  supports  national 
PES in the implementation of country-specific recommendations addressed to Member States 
in the context of the European Semester on active labour market policies and PES issues. 

initiatives,  such  as 

An  added  value  of  the  PES  Network  has  been  a  structured  framework  for  assessing  PES 
performance and capacity and for facilitating comparisons, peer learning and improvements.  
The  evaluation  demonstrates  several  other  results  of  the  Decision  that  would  not  have  been 
achieved by voluntary cooperation of national PES. Some important achievements are greater 
ownership, the provision of individual PES learning and collective mutual learning, ensuring 
a collective voice and a  formal platform in  policy-making at  EU level, and contributions  to 
the EU2020 objectives. 

Overall, the evaluation shows that the Decision has been successfully implemented and some 
lessons learnt could be identified. Generally, less advanced PES have benefitted more from 
participating  in  the  Network  in  terms  of  the  progress  they  have  made  on  performance,  but 
advanced  PES  have  also  progressed.  As  potentials  to  further  improve  efficiency,  the 
evaluation  identifies  some  areas,  such  as  focusing  on  smaller  and  more  targeted  learning 
events  and  the  potential  for  further  use  of  digital  solutions.  As  key  actors  in  the 
implementation of the European Social Fund, PES also play an active role in the development 
of a comprehensive strategy for a policy framework for active labour market policies within 
their respective Member States, thereby contributing to the effective and efficient spending of 
EU funds. The evaluation also demonstrates that financial, organisational and expert support 
from the EU level is essential to ensure the continuous participation of all PES. 

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