STAFFER BRINGS TOGETHER KEY STAKEHOLDERS IN THE RAILWAY INDUSTRY, TO COOPERATE CLOSELY IN ANTICIPATING TRAINING NEEDS AND IMPROVING THE DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE EDUCATION SECTOR AND THE LABOUR MARKET.
In mid-2020, The European Rail Supply Industry (UNIFE) analysed the situation of the European railway industry that is responsible for 400,000 direct and indirect jobs and detected that it is necessary to look for the best means to guarantee the training of professionals who adapt to the changing needs of transport, capable of carrying out the development of the next generation of railways. And from this association the programme “Skill Training Alliance For the Future European Rail system” (STAFFER) was promoted.
The STAFFER project, with a consortium consisting of 7 infrastructure operators / administrators, 8 railway industry suppliers, 2 asciations, a consulting firm and 14 educational institutions, aims to help meet training needs and to improve the dialogue between the education sector and the labour market of the railway sector, offering human capital solutions for all levels of the railway value chain. A railway members union – Skill Alliance – will be created as a result of the project, which will aim at developing a Blueprint strategy that will enable to recognise the current needs and the new capacities for the achievement of a single European railway space.
The project is currently working on the implementation of the training programmes developed in its preliminary phases. To do so, agreements will be encouraged, supported and developed between the different project partners (academic and industrial), around the following training programmes:
– Trans-European student mobility programmes and internships in companies
– Trans-European scholarship holder mobility programmes and internships in companies
– Trans-European staff mobility programmes and internships in companies
– VET in the EQF levels 3-5
– VET in the EQF levels 6-8
Universities and public-private collaboration in professional development
The railway is constantly evolving to adapt itself, as a differentiating element to what society requests. In this context, it is essential to maintain continuous training of professionals who develop their work within the railway industry, in each and every one of its systems.
In the railway industry, and thanks to public-private collaboration of companies, institutions and universities, the offer of this continuous training is wide and key. The companies have subsidised schemes in auxiliary tasks, and specialised master’s degrees in a wide range of segments.
TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT
One of the aspects that is most valued by employees when being part of a company is the possibility of growing within the organization and having support to continue their professional development. The candidates value quality proposals and companies that have training plans in those areas that are most demanded to be up to date with the most relevant advances in the sector.
Investment in continuous training is essential to strengthen the workforce and have a highly qualified human capital, according to the demands of the market and with the ability to provide a differentiating value both, to customers, and to the infrastructure projects that are developed. From the workforce point of view, these plans promote employee satisfaction, increase their integration, and allow them to move forward. In this way, its development is enhanced and the perceptions of stagnation that can lead to the search for other options in the market are avoided.
In the railway sector, the training provision is very wide. The companies have bonus schemes, as well as advanced courses in railway schools for driving, in auxiliary tasks, and specialized master’s degrees in a wide range of segments.
Corporate culture increasingly tends to be based on each employee’s motivation to meet their career aspirations and address their needs.
Specialised Masters
Future professionals in the sector are looking for a specialised training offer. Institutions, agencies, and universities work closely to provide specialisation plans according to market demands.
ONE OF THE MAIN CHALLENGES FACING THE RAILWAY INDUSTRY IS THE DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF TALENT. THE SECTOR DEMANDS NEW SPECIALISED PROFILES, MORE TRANSVERSAL ROLES AND TRAINING THAT MEETS ITS NEEDS. TO RESPOND TO THIS CHALLENGE, MAFEX PARTICIPATES IN DIFFERENT TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT ACTIVITIES.
SOME OF THESE EXAMPLES ARE:
WORKinLan SUMMIT
Mafex attended the WORKinLan Summit held in Bilbao on 16th-17th February. The scientific, academic, institutional, and economic meeting point to face the challenges related to employment was attended, among others, by David Card, Nobel Prize in Economics and Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley.
In this context, the ISEAK Foundation presented the White Paper on Employment in the Basque Country. The three major transitions that we face in the historical territory, as well as in the national one and the EU were presented. The challenge, to take advantage of the opportunities presented by these changes to generate quality employment.
Demographic transition, increased longevity and declining birth rates hamper the welfare system and the intergenerational equity. The technological transition, on the other hand, has accelerated technological development, the use of the internet and the use of artificial intelligence. This transition represents a great opportunity to increase the level of well-being, but it can lead to great inequalities. For this reason, technological development should be associated with “brilliant technologies”; technologies that generate productivity improvements without substituting employment for capital. Finally, the climate transition, a global problem that must be addressed with international agreements.
Reflections and instruments of change have been presented in this congress. The social welfare and the employment of the future must be achieved with policies that will deal with education, the integration of women and of foreign nationals, climate change mitigation policies or public-private research.
EMPLOYMENT AND BUSINESS PRESENTATION DAY 2023 (JEPE) UPV/EHU (UNIVERSITY OF THE BASQUE COUNTRY)
With the aim of bringing Mafex closer to the training offer and making the railway sector known to students, on 16th February the association participated in the Employment and Business Presentation Day of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). During this annual meeting, the students from the Faculty of Engineering had the opportunity to learn about the activities carried out by the railway companies and the incorporation opportunities and profiles they are looking for.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES MANIFESTO IN THE MOBILITY SECTOR
Mafex endorses the “Equal Opportunities Manifesto in the Mobility Sector” promoted by EJE&CON | Asociación Española de Ejecutiv@s y Consejer@s. (Spanish Association of Executives and Consultants).
The aforementioned document aims to strengthen the presence of women in the mobility sector, which currently represents only 22% and is instead the largest user in mobility. To do so, it is considered essential to promote equality with the application of good practices that generate greater talent, diversity and therefore greater wealth and added value to mobility.
