General Federation of Trade Unions
Supporting the Needs of Older, Vulnerable Employees
Press Release
For immediate release
Friday 27th January 2012
Subject: GFTU EDUCATIONAL TRUST launches European project for older workers affected by global recession
The UK General Federation of Trade Unions Educational Trust (GFTU ET) is launching an EU-funded project designed to equip older workers with key skills to enable them to maintain their employment during the economic recession. The project is SNOVE (supporting the needs of older, vulnerable employees).
The launch takes place at the International War Crimes Tribunal of the Former Yugoslavia at The Hague, Netherlands on Mon 30th January and Tuesday 31st January. The staff union of the Tribunal is partner of this project.
As the global economic downturn continues to have major implications for the EU, its citizens face significant employment insecurity. Older workers in particular face the twin threat of attempting to maintain employability with restricted access to the knowledge of how to do this.
As quoted by Doug Nicholls, General Secretary of the GFTU
"European workers are facing a crisis which is not of their making. This project will equip European workers with the skills to tackle a crisis which is posing considerable economic and social difficulties to them and their families".
The GFTU ET’s project, funded by the EU’s lifelong learning programme’s (LLP) Leonardo stream will transfers its innovative experience of working with older workers facing redundancy and other workplace change to four European countries via partner organisations:
* The staff union of the international war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (UN-ICTY)
* Toulouse Business School (France)
* The Workers’ Academy (Finland)
* Balkans Institute for Labour & Social Policy (BILSP) (Bulgaria)
Editors: For background information on the GFTU ET go to: www.gftu.org.uk