In April 2014, 5.26 million young people (under 25) were unemployed in the EU28, with an overall youth unemployment rate of 22.5%. In this context it is important to support sectors that have consistently provided European youth with a foothold on the labour market. The hospitality sector is one such industry.
A Europe-wide study published at the end of 2013 revealed that the hospitality sector plays a critical role in fighting youth unemployment and is essential for jobs and growth and the health of other sectors. This is backed up by labour market statistics, which show that growth in employment in the hospitality sector amounted to 2.9% per year in 2000-2010, compared to an average rate of 0.7% in the overall economy. The hospitality sector created 2.5 million jobs in this decade (2000-2010).
In the current context of youth unemployment, it is more and more important to enable workers to move easily between jobs and countries. However, workers looking for employment in other countries, and employers wishing to employ workers from abroad, often face difficulties due to a lack of visibility and difficulties in transferring their qualifications and skills.
Time to innovate
An innovative approach is key to enabling mobility in the hospitality sector. The European Hospitality Skills Passport is the first tool available in all EU languages, developed to facilitate contact between jobseekers and employers in high-mobility sectors of the European labour market. The Passport is an innovative instrument that helps erase language barriers and enable workers and employers alike to overcome difficulties with comparing and validating skills acquired in other countries. The Skills Passport is an initiative of the European Commission in association with HOTREC, the umbrella association representing hotels, restaurants, cafés and similar establishments in Europe, and the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT).
The Skills Passport is a new tool offered on the EURES Portal that allows workers to record all the skills and competences gained during their education, training and practical work experience. The Passport complements a traditional CV and enables employers to easily find the skills they need. In so doing, the Passport facilitates a better match between offer and demand on the hospitality sector labour market.
Making jobseekers mobile
The Skills Passport brings benefits to both parties in the job search equation. For jobseekers, it allows them to take advantage of European mobility by presenting their skills and competences to employers regardless of their country or language.
The tools intuitive format allows jobseekers to easily add their skills by simply selecting them from a list and indicating the experience through which these skills were acquired. To further increase their appeal to potential employers they have the option of having their skills endorsed by former employers or by attaching diplomas or recommendation letters.
Helping employers find skilled workers
The increased visibility offered by the Skills Passport allows employers to quickly find employees with the right skills regardless of where they are located. The tool automatically translates the skills of the jobseekers into the language of the employer. Employers can select the skills they are looking for in an employee by ticking them on a list, and the system will match them with suitable jobseeker profiles from all over Europe.
Employers can also endorse the skills of their previous employees to help them succeed in finding a new job, while themselves benefiting from the recommendations given by other employers when hiring new employees.
Benefits for all
By increasing the transparency of hospitality sector workers across Europe and making their skills more exportable, the Skills Passport enhances the visibility of these jobseekers on the job market and increases their chances of being found by the right employers. It also enables employers to find workers with the right skills to meet their needs.
Given that the hospitality and tourism sector is a source of first-time jobs for many of Europes young people, the Passport makes a significant contribution to improving youth employment prospects in the EU.
The European Hospitality Skills Passport is the first in a series of passports that will cover a range of sectors with high potential for labour mobility. So, check this site regularly for updates – your sector could be the next to be covered by the Skills Passport.
Quotes
Harald Wiedenhofer, EFFAT General Secretary:
EFFAT and HOTREC, the Social Partners in the European Hotel and Restaurant sector, have done a great job in jointly elaborating the skills list for the European Hospitality Skills Passport. This innovative tool, available in all EU languages, will enable hospitality workers in Europe to document all the skills they acquired in education, vocational training and on the job, and to get those skills recognized.
Kent Nyström, HOTREC President
The newly launched Hospitality Skills Passport represents an essential tool to foster youth employment in the EU, as mobility is one of the sectors main characteristic. I trust that this initiative developed by HOTREC and EFFAT together with the European Commission will greatly support young Europeans in promoting their working experiences and languages skills across the European Union.
László Andor, Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
An innovative social policy is key to realizing our vision of Europe. The European Hospitality Skills Passport is an important new tool in the common European effort to increase social cohesion and to promote mobility on the labour market, especially for young people. This initiative is a good example of what can be achieved through close collaboration between the European Commission and its social partners and we look forward to seeing this cooperation expand into other sectors of the labour market also.
