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Joint social partners initiative

Teknikcollege in Sweden: Network of competence centers for quality standards in training

Teknikcollege is a network of competence centers setting quality standards for technical education in Sweden. Within the network of Teknikcollege companies cooperate with municipalities and providers of education (colleges, technical universities, secondary schools) to create and supervise technology-oriented courses at different levels, matching the skills needs of the industry.

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Pass’IFRIA – a tailor-made approach to training in the food industry in France

The Pass’IFRIA is a course of integration and training of six months for new workers in the food industry. It is a short training, centred on practical skills. It is completely accomplished within the company through dual training, with theoretical lessons and training at the workplace.

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Implementing the Occupational Safety and Health Directive in the Romanian food industry

General objective: Implementing better actions and measures for preventing professional risks in the Food industry, focusing on small and medium enterprises (SME), in order to improve the occupational safety and health.

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Proactive recruitment of youngsters at New England Seafood, UK

New England Seafood is a fish processing business in Chessington on the outskirts of London. In the past it has relied for its permanent factory staff on conversion of temporary labour to permanent employees after a 12-week trial period.

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Project “SPILL” – Lifelong learning in Germany

Joint social partners initiative: “ Sozialpartnerinitiative Lebenslanges Lernen” (SPILL)
Through technological progress and innovations, adaptation processes take place everywhere and result in qualification needs for employees in general and an ageing workforce in particular.

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Food Chain Contract: Promoting social dialogue & quality of employment in France

The food chain contract was signed in June 2013 between several branches of the food chain, trade unions and the state (ministry and regions). There is an employment section in this sector contract.

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Tasting Professions in the food industry in Finland

Project “Tasting Profession” in food industry. Information campaign to the youth about different kinds of professions and work in food industry.
Websites, videos, information of education have been published. Social partners occasionally visit schools and upper-schools with food specialists who explain their job tasks and working conditions.

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FEED: Improving the recruitment of young people in the food sector in Norway

The Feed project was a common project of the Norwegian social partners in the food and drink industry from 2011 to 2014.

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Upskilling and increasing the competence of production workers at Bisca in Denmark

The Danish company Bisca is a manufacturer for biscuits and cakes with around 460 employees. Bisca is located in an area offering only few alternative jobs. The company’s workforce includes many low skilled and unskilled workers.

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Training and upskilling programme at Arla Foods in Denmark

Arla Foods (Dairy company, number of employees: 19,600) has started an extensive skills development and upskilling programme in 2009. The initiative goes back to the social partners in the Danish dairy industry, who has agreed to upgrade the skills all employees in the dairy industry within the next years.

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Exchange of good practices and learning network in Belgium

The sectorial training institute IFP (Institut de Formation Professionnelle), the food industry training institute (managed jointly by the sectorial social partners), has set up a learning network of social actors and companies involved in the training of workers.

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Industrial learning agreement in Belgium

Several sectors of activity in Belgium already have a system in place for the 15/25 years old jobseekers that combines learning with working. This is the case for the food industry. The programme is co-managed by the trade unions and employers’ organizations: they have set up an “apprenticeship Committee” that identifies learning and employment priorities, in cooperation with professional / technical schools. The social partners are the ones who can deliver homologation to companies who wish to hire apprentices. The programme allows people to learn on-the job during one or two years. They go to school two days a week, and work in a company three days a week. They get paid a salary for the days they work. The salary is of 50% of the minimum hourly wage and bonuses and/or incentives to promote motivation and presence at work.

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Introduction of extra days of paid leave for older workers in the Belgian food industry

The previous government in power in Belgium changed the conditions for early retirement. Because of this, many workers close to retirement age are obligated to work longer than expected. The current government has decided to make the conditions even stricter and have increased the retirement age from 65 to 67 years. Hence, the social partners have decided to provide better conditions for workers with seniority. The objective is both preventive and a compensatory. In the recent negotiations, the social partners have renegotiated the conditions for extra days of leave.

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New apprenticeship programme “Food technician” in Austria

Main driver behind the newly introduced apprenticeship scheme “Food technician” was the Austrian employers’ organisation “Fachverband der Lebensmittelindustrie”, who initiated and developed the programme inclusive of training curricula in close cooperation with the trade union Pro-Ge in 2008. The apprenticeship for the food technician takes 3 ½ years.

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