Labour market mobility in the euroregion Galicia – Norte Portugal

Problems with the cross border recognition of Vocation Training certificates results in that workers from one side of the border cannot compete under the same conditions with with workers from the domestic labour market. Labour moblility across borders is an important factor in increasing social and economic integration between the two regions, improving their competitiveness through labour market dynamism.  This is the main objective of this GNP-EGTC initiative, supported by Xunta de Galicia, the CCDR-N and the Employment and Training Institute of Portugal (IEFP), which is responsible for educational and employment issues in Portugal.

This initiative is designed to encourage labour mobility and improve the competitiveness of this Euroregion, by connecting workers with employers resulting in a more cohesive labour market. This initiative is expected to improve the current evalution and recognition process for Vocational Training certificates on both sides of the border. The purpose of this initiative is to develop, for Vocational Training, a similar process to the Bologna process for Higher Education in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), which has resulted in a much improved degree of integration for European higher studies. This project will initially focus on the top 5 most important sectors of VT in the Galicia – Norte Portugal Euroregion, where the most labour relationships are found: Automotive, naval (shipbuilding), Building, Health and Tourism. Subsequently it will be extended to other labour sectors.