European site reveals 1.3m job vacancies

Despite the rising numbers of unemployed throughout Europe, there is a shortage of workers in many countries and in many skills — and a revamped jobseeker network aims to help bridge the gap.

There are more than 1.3 million vacancies currently listed on the EURES site — estimated to be up to 40% of jobs available — and it is searched by about four million people a month, making the site and service the biggest of its kind in the world.

Every week about 1,000 people get a job as a result of the 150,000 contacts made between jobseekers and employers — but people must be prepared to move countries or regions.

Employment Commissioner László Andor said that the improvements they plan for the network aim to make moving easier for people and for employers to find workers across borders.

“Improving jobseekers’ mobility between member states can be part of the solution to the unacceptably high levels of unemployment,” he said and called on all EU countries to implement the reforms.

“The number of unfilled vacancies has been on the rise since mid-2009, particularly in high growth areas such as information and communications technologies and the green economy,” he said.

In all the network covers 31 countries including Norway and Switzerland. It is free of charge and gives information on living and working conditions in all the participating countries in 25 languages. It hosts 750,000 CVs at any one time and lists hundreds of events that take place all over Europe where jobseekers will meet potential employers.

With close to 900 specially trained staff, the plan is to extend the service to focus especially on young people who are more likely to be willing to move country.

It will also include forms of employment that combine work and learning opportunities including apprenticeships.

The website will also be revamped to create user-friendly online matching tools and access to skills-based labour market intelligence that will make it easier to employers and jobseekers to find one another.

They also plan to increase the number of vacancies listed by extending the number of partners in each member state they deal with. Member states are being asked to designate specialist services to organise the reform and develop the more targeted services so that the extended system is up and running by January 1, 2014.

While all EU citizens are free to move around, study and find work in any member state only just over 3% of citizens are living in a different EU country. The numbers received a big boost after enlargement to central and eastern countries after 2004, but since then it has fallen by a third.

According to a Eurobarometer survey last year more than a quarter of those questioned said they would consider working in another EU country and this increased to more than half among young people.

* Check it out: http://ec.europa.eu/eures/