Eurofound and ELA organise joint forum on recruiting.

Together with the European Labour Authority (ELA), the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) organised a forum on the topic of recruitment on 25 October. Under the motto "Struggling to recruit? Learn from effective practices", the organisations have invited people to exchange their experience and share important tips and empirical figures on recruiting employees. The reason for the event was the increasing labour shortage in the European Union (EU) and its negative impact on economic growth.

Challenges in dealing with the shortage of skilled labour

The challenges that companies are facing due to demographic change and the shortage of skilled labour were discussed during the panel discussions. Companies need to become increasingly innovative to recruit new employees. This includes, among other things, adapting and improving working conditions. Investment in the training of new employees and in existing staff, e.g. through continuing and advanced training programmes would have to be made so that they can successfully adapt to the changed framework conditions.

Another key aspect is labour mobility. The panellists emphasised that the opportunities for workers to move more flexibly within countries should be promoted more strongly by the European Commission. At the same time, the bureaucratic burden on companies must be reduced, for example by simplifying legislation. The creation of attractive jobs should help to attract workers, including those, who are not currently available on the labour market or who come from other countries.

Exchange on successful strategies

The aim of the joint forum was to bring together the EU institutions, national governments, social partners, non-governmental organisations and company representatives for a constructive exchange of experience.

Companies that were able to achieve successful recruitment with their respective strategies were also presented at the event. These include, for example, the St Francis Hospital in Prague. The hospital was able to convince with its detailed presentation of the recruitment process, the framework conditions and the development opportunities for employees as an attractive employer. Among other things, employees can take advantage of accommodation in the hospital's own residential home or in senior citizens' flats.