Encouraging lifelong and intergenerational learning: the experience of the EQUAL programme

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Encouraging lifelong and intergenerational
learning the experience of the EQUAL programme

• Helen Tubb
• GHK Consulting

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A quick introduction

• European thematic experts for the European Social
  Fund (ESF) EQUAL initiative
• Role to research, analyse and disseminate the
  lessons from EQUAL at the European level
• Three key questions
• What is EQUAL?
• How does EQUAL address age management?
• What key messages can EQUAL offer regarding
  lifelong and intergenerational learning?

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What is EQUAL?

• ESF Community Initiative (2001 2008)
• Aims to find new ways of tackling discrimination
  and inequality in the labour market, both for
  those in and out of work (inc. older workers)
• 3.274 billion, co-financed by Member States
• 3,239 EQUAL Development Partnerships (DPs)
• Organised according to 9 thematic fields
• Lifelong learning (466 DPs)
• Adaptation to change and new information and
  communication technologies (312 DPs)

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Key principles

• Innovation developing and testing out new ideas
• Partnership involving public authorities,
  companies, social partners, education/training
  organisations and non-governmental organisations
• Empowerment engaging and building capacity of
  all stakeholders
• Transnational cooperation exchanging and
  collaborating across national boundaries
• Mainstreaming informing and influencing policy

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EQUAL and age management

• 210 DPs focus on age management issues
• Highest numbers in Germany, United Kingdom, Italy
  and France
• Of the new Member States, Poland, Estonia and
  Slovakia are the most represented
• Most active in terms of the following thematic
  fields
• Lifelong learning
• Adaptation to change
• (Re-)integration to the labour market

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A closer look

• New analysis of 55 age management DPs
• Significant SME, regional and sectoral foci
• Target groups older workers, older female
  workers, employers, public authorities and social
  partners
• Methods vocational training, awareness-raising,
  guidance and counselling, and skills audits
• Tools research, evaluation and studies,
  methodological development, networking and
  mentoring schemes
• European Age Management Network

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Lifelong and intergenerational learning

• Brings clear benefits, both for the employer and
  older/younger person
• Capturing and recognising the tacit knowledge of
  older workers
• Motivating and retaining older workers (and
  re-integrating the older unemployed)
• Engaging and developing potential of younger
  workers
• Addressing intergenerational barriers
• Making companies more attractive, innovative and
  competitive

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EQUAL success story InnKoop (1)

• Saxony region of Germany
• Prospect of skills/staff shortages in the
  mechanical engineering and automotive sectors,
  especially in SMEs
• Age-related stereotypes within companies
• 7 sub-projects inc. career planning, knowledge
  databases, company networks, and technical, IT
  and soft skills training
• Fit for the future sub-project
• Tandem learning groups of 2 6 older and
  younger works
• Technological training, plus company-specific
  courses

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EQUAL success story InnKoop (2)

• Supported 337 female and 583 male engineers
• 90 of the older unemployed secured employment
• Created new jobs
• Intergenerational exchange offers new
  possibilities for on-the-job learning and
  task-specific advanced training processes. Beside
  the technical qualifications, this form of
  education offers the potential to improve the
  cooperation between the generations and the
  development of common social competences Rene
  Tommer, DP representative
• http//innkoop-equal.be

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EQUAL success story RITA (1)

• Decline of the Algarves traditional food
  industry
• Intergenerational Platform bringing together
• Older local artisans and traditional food
  producers
• Young food engineering students
• University of the Algarve as a mediator
• Involving
• Intergenerational visits and exchanges
• On-the-job training and practical activities
• Traditional food on the university curricular
  and research agenda
• Company-oriented problem solving

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EQUAL success story RITA (2)

• Boosted the traditional food industry
• Encouraged students to start up businesses and
  work in the industry
• Generated academic interest in the subject, which
  led to new health and safety innovations, and
  business benefits
• The DPs work with older workers was
  particular as representatives of the traditional
  industries were afraid to join the project. They
  had no previous contact with and confidence in
  academic circles David Gago, DP representative
• Promoted cooperation between academic and
  traditional/artisan arenas a new dialogue
• davidgago_at_qualigenese.pt

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Key messages (1)

• Raise awareness of the benefits of
  intergenerational learning amongst employers
• Focus on the business benefits e.g. tacit
  knowledge
• Make sure the delivery is cost-effective, and
  time and resource efficient
• Engage the senior management
• Address underlying stereotypes and barriers
• Involve representative organisations e.g. artisan
  associations
• Promote positive examples
• Highlight and challenge the prejudices
• Remember that the emotional rewards often
  outweigh the financial ones

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Key messages (2)

• Capture tacit knowledge in a collective way
• Knowledge databases
• Toolkits
• Make sure three key groups are involved and can
  see the benefits
• Managers
• Older workers
• Younger workers
• Involve mediators/intermediaries
• Make sure the skills/knowledge can be directly
  applied to the workplace and are based on
  existing competencies

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EQUAL success story Alliance for Work (1)

• Restructuring in the Lódzki region, Poland
• Employer reluctance to recruit the 45
• Vulnerable sub-group older women
• Inadequacy of professional advisors
• New job coach model
• Training the 45 as job coaches to support their
  peers
• Coaching and career-planning - Individual
  Development Plan
• Soft skills, ICT and vocational training

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EQUAL success story Alliance for Work (2)

• The first day, the participants were a bit
  reluctant, while at the end of the training
  period, the new job coaches were motivated and
  impatient to begin their new job! DP
  representative
• New regional partnership
• Clear advantages to involving the social partners
  and local NGOs
• Results
• 88 job coaches and 297 45 trainees
• Case study Karol Jonscher Hospital
• Post-graduate course in 45 career management
• Employer manual The 45 in your company
• www.undp.org.pl/en / www.agealliance.org

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EQUAL success story Life Competence 50 (1)

• Multi-disciplinary partnership in Sweden
  employer, research institutes, public
  authorities, PES and trade union
• Aims to
• Capitalise on the revealed competences of older
  people
• Match these competences with business needs inc.
  mentoring and providing technical/administrative
  support in the early years of a business
• Create a network of contacts
• Competence analysis method
• Four steps
• Flexible and tailored approach
• Covers the whole life experience

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EQUAL success story Life Competence 50 (2)

• Interviews with new start-ups to assess business
  needs 17 paired up with 50 unemployed
• Network Centre 50
• European Age Management Network
• Constitution agreed
• 30 member organisations and a mailing list of 130
  organisations
• Inaugural meeting in June 2008
• www.livskompetens.com

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Key messages (3)

• Identify, valorise and validate prior knowledge
• Question Bank
• Skills portfolios / Training cards
• Empower the target group in the design and
  delivery of the solutions
• Integrate psychological support
• Soft leisure activities
• Private consultations
• Blend learning formats e-learning is not the
  whole solution!

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Key messages (4)

• Recognise the value of soft skills
• Look beyond the use of qualifications as a
  competency measure the French jury model
• Take advantage of peer-based learning
• Dont forget the gender dimension
• Take preventative and anticipatory measures
  40, 45, 50?
• Overall
• Empower and tailor actions to the needs of
  individuals
• Win over employers!

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Where to find out more

• Anticipating Change effective approaches to
  lifelong learning and age management conference
  - Greece, December 2007
• Conference report
• EQUAL paving the way for lifelong learning and
  age management
• Wide range of case studies and success stories
• Policy briefs e.g. The working life cycle and
  Crossing the generations
• http//ec.europa.eu/employment_social/equal/index_
  en.cfm
• helen.tubb_at_ghkint.com / toms.feifs_at_ghkint.com