At the first meeting of the Labour Migration Platform in Brussels, commissioners for home affairs Ylva Johansson and jobs and social rights Nicolas Schmit welcomed migration and employment specialists from EU Member States. The platform has been created to promote labour migration from non-EU nations to the EU, to guarantee that it is well-managed, and to ensure that it is directed towards areas with the greatest demand for labour and skills.
With the aim of fostering close cooperation between the two sectors as well as between Member States and the EU to support the effective implementation of EU-level initiatives on legal migration and employment, the new platform brings together the Commission and representatives from Member States with expertise in migration and employment policy. An initiative of the Skills and Talent Package, the Platform’s introduction will support the goals and initiatives of the suggested 2023 Year of Skills.
In the fields of healthcare and information technology, for instance, Member States are experiencing a labour and skill deficit. To secure future competitiveness and maximise the benefits of the green and digital transformation, a skilled workforce is essential. These shortages will worsen in the future as a result of present demographic trends that are causing an ageing and declining working population in the EU.
Well-managed labour migration is one strategy that can help to overcome this problem. The participants at the meeting on Tuesday discussed the difficulties facing the labour market and the potential for labour migration to assist address these problems.
