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Eures Advisers - A Profile

EURES advisers are the driving force behind the European Employment Services network

What is a EURES adviser?
EURES advisers are the driving force behind the European Employment Services network; they are experts on mobility-related matters. They can work in public employment services (in Slovakia, the Offices of Labour, Social Affairs & Family) in trade union organisations, or in employer organisations and together create a Europe-wide network of experts. This network of advisers has a database of job vacancies as well as an information database on living and working conditions in the EU/EEA countries and Switzerland.
EURES advisers play a key role in providing information, advice and assistance in the recruitment and placement of their clients on labour markets. Their services are intended both for jobseekers and employers. The European Commission project establishing the network in 1993 laid down the profile for EURES advisers, and was approved by all partners.

What does the European Commission require in selecting a suitable candidate for this position?
The first and most important criterion is their language skills and personality. An important part of their work is information and advisory activity using the Internet, therefore PC and IT skills are required. Since they are employees of the Labour Offices at least 1 year’s practice in public employment services is required, together with the employer’s consent to the assignation of at minimum 50% of their working time for the European Commission, as well as acceptance of their management by the EURES manager.
It is a position requiring a high degree of specialisation and professional knowledge.

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What training must a selected candidate undergo so as to be able to competently perform their work?
A candidate must successfully complete initial training for gaining basic skills and advanced training for acquiring more detailed, deeper knowledge of the given issue. Education then continues through training sessions focused on acquiring special skills, e.g.: for communication with the media, for employer services, student services, knowledge of EU/EEA social security systems, in creating cross-border partnerships, in planning, etc.

Who are EURES services intended for?
The EURES target groups comprise registered jobseekers or other jobseekers and employers, including self-employed persons, students, pensioners, institutions, agencies, foreigners and also employees of public employment services.

What are the main tasks of EURES advisers?
We provide information, expert advice and employment agency services in the EU/EEA countries and Switzerland. We work with employers in recruitments and we promote the EURES target groups. We also provide special advice to commuters in border-lying regions.
We perform our tasks through direct contact with clients at Offices of Labour Social Affairs & Family, by providing advice by telephone or in writing, though most frequently over the Internet through the EURES work portals at the national and European level.

What kind of advice do you provide in other fields?
The main and most important area is the provision of information on living and working conditions in EU/EEA countries and Switzerland, on the opportunities for a client seeking employment in the labour market in the destination country with regard to surpluses and deficits in professions in the market. Particularly important for labour migrants is information on the coordination of social security systems and healthcare insurance systems as well as information on taxation of their incomes. Labour migrants are also particularly interested in information on the recognition abroad of their educational qualifications, or information on business opportunities and the freedom of movement in services.

We perform agency activity by searching for a suitable job for a given client. On our work portals we present available information, specimen CVs, specimen job applications and letters of application, provide help with preparing for an interview, etc. Free of charge we organise interviews for employers at the premises of Labour Offices and ensure communication between employers and candidates, help them in overcoming language barriers during interviews, in feedback with selected candidates, etc.
In contact with employers (personally, by telephone, post, Internet) we provide information on business opportunities in Slovakia, possibilities for free publication of job vacancies on the EURES portals, on conditions for cooperation with EURES, on possibilities for contact between an employer and candidate via virtual recruitments as well as information on possible barriers to mobility, on surpluses and shortages in the labour market, on competition, the price of labour, etc.

Which institutions does EURES work with?
EURES works primarily with the public employment services of the EU/EEA countries and Switzerland, followed by representative offices and ministries, labour inspectorates, immigration offices, healthcare insurance and social security institutions, tax and trade licensing authorities, institutions for recognition of qualifications and for student exchanges and intern stays and with institutions created by the European Commission for European cooperation.

How do you promote your activity?
In fulfilling our tasks under our Activities Plan we are in permanent contact with the media and we inform the public about our activity through newspaper and magazine articles and by giving radio and TV interviews, as well as distributing to target groups our information materials, leaflets and brochures, such as:
“What not to forget upon leaving for the EU/EEA” “Have you returned to Slovakia?” “Tempted by life, study or a career in another European country?”, etc.

We perform all these tasks also through the entry and updating of data on our work portals: www.eures.sk and www.eures.europa.eu