As of 2023, more than three quarters of companies in the European Union reported that they struggle to find employees with the necessary and specific skills. 40% of adults and every third person working in Europe lack basic digital skills. Women are proven to be underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) careers and studies.

These disparities in skills, opportunities, and representation have lead to a doubling of labour shortages in key sectors and jobs for the green transition between 2015 and 2021 – this is where the European Year of Skills steps in.

Running until May 2024, the Year will provide a unique opportunity to push for a skills revolution in Europe, and normalise the upskilling and reskilling of all workers, regardless of age, by promoting the ongoing work on skills development.

There’s a festival?

Indeed! The European Commission (EC) will celebrate the start of the Year with a European Year of Skills festival on 9 May, held in a hybrid format. Here, attendees can link up with speakers and other events across Europe that showcase skills-related efforts and highlight the value of skills.

If you are organising events on skills development, please register them on our interactive events map through this survey. You can find skills-related activities and events by checking the interactive map on the European Year of Skills website. EYS National Coordinators shape the Year in their countries. 

What have testimonials got to do with it?

The European Parliament and the Council reached a political agreement on the European Year of Skills on 7 March 2023, and two months later, in May, it will be adopted, so the European Year of Skills is still quite new! The EC is therefore eager to hear testimonials of people who successfully acquired new skillsets for the job market, as well as stories of successful projects linked to skills and the labour market.

If you have stories and experiences to share, please fill in this template and send it to EMPL-SHARE-YOUR-SKILLS-STORY@ec.europa.eu along with the signed consent form.

Get inspired, get involved, get skilled.