The seminar was opened with a keynote speech delivered by Peter Stub Jrgensen, Director in the European Commission, DG Employment. After the presentation of the VENet Model a high-ranking plenum discussed Innovative strategies on the encouragement of disadvantaged people: perspectives and solutions. Naturally, Karin Jns from the European Parliament, Walter Wolf, representative of the European Commission, Charlotte Gruber from the Austrian project BAP and Fintan Farrell, director of the Europan Anti Poverty Network took different perspectives of the topic.
Nevertheless, there was general agreement among the panel that the Lisbon targets are still a far way off. The trend to flexicurity tends to stop at flexi and to forget about the security. In order to reach employment targets it is definitely not enough to create lots of new short term jobs. Quality, not quantity should be the key word for new working possibilities. The plenum agreed that the VENet Model is definitely a step into the right direction, however, it needs to be a tailor made programme to reach the most vulnerable group of the labour market disadvantaged long term unemployed people.
For further information please have a look at www.venet-eu.com
Judith Riessner