Grant project under Operational Programme Employment (OPE); ESF programming period 2014 - 2020 POVEZ II

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Name of the instrument - Local language
Grantový projekt v Operačním programu Zaměstnanost (OPZ) v programovém období ESF 2014 - 2020 POVEZ II
Name of the instrument - English translation
Grant project under Operational Programme Employment (OPE); ESF programming period 2014 - 2020 POVEZ II
Scheme ID
41
Country
Czechia
Reporting year
2020
Type of instrument
Grant for companies
Sub-type of instrument
Support for direct costs and wage costs
Type of entry
Single instrument
Short description

Companies can apply for a grant to cover their training expenses. The eligible education and training activities depend on specific calls published. Occupational courses connected to the present economic activity of the participant are considered eligible types of training to be funded. The public co-funding is 85% of the eligible costs. The contribution compensates for tuition fees/fees for participation (external providers), costs for internal training personnel, and costs of wages during training. ESF funds are deployed for financing the scheme. Preferential treatment is given to companies hiring the low qualified, people within the age range of 55-64.

Not applicable
Level of operation
National
Name of a part of the country
Not applicable
Name of the region (for regional instruments)
Not applicable
Name of the sector (for sectoral instruments)
Not applicable
Relevance
Key instrument
Partnership Agreement between the EU and the Czech Republic for the ESF funding period 2014 - 2020
Objective(s) and target(s)
OP Employment covers the following areas of support: - employability - equal opportunities of men and women - adaptability of employees and employers - adult learning - social integration and combating poverty - modernisation of public administration and public services - international cooperation and social innovation in the area of employability, social integration and public administration.
Year of implementation
2015
Year of termination
2022
Operation/management
Ministry of Regional Development is responsible for the overall management of Structural Funds and regulation and is the National Coordination Authority (NCA) for the implementation of programmes co-funded from the EU funds; Ministry of Finance is responsible for auditing, is the Audit Body and the Payment and Certification Body for funding provided by the EU to the Czech Republic; Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs is the managing entity (Managing Authority) for the Operational Programme (OP) Employment; Labour Office is the recipient of funds for the project POVEZ II, distributes contributions for training costs and refunds wages of employees (while in training).
Eligible group(s)
All business corporations, self-employed people with or without employees, state-owned companies, legal entities, daughter companies of a foreign legal person (entity) registered in the Czech Republic, non-state non-profit organizations not located in Prague (capital).
Group(s) with preferential treatment
Companies with employees 54+ and companies/applicants established in poorer regions can receive extra points when applying.
Education and training eligible
Occupational courses connected to the present economic activity of the participant
Source of financing and collection mechanism
European Social Fund covers 85% of training costs (85% of ESF is EU contribution and 15% is covered by national public sources - state budget); companies' budget covers 15% of training costs.
Financing formula and allocation mechanisms
Project-based funding. Companies (applicants) meeting predefined criteria best are funded. The maximum amount of funding is CZ 6.000.000 (EUR 237 624) per year per applicant. The maximum contribution to cover hourly wages for employees in training is CZ 198 (EUR 7.8) or CZ 33 000 (EUR 1 307) a month. Funding is allocated as reimbursement of costs (85% of costs are covered by ESF, remaining 15% of costs are covered from the beneficiaries' own sources). The amount of funding is directly transferred to the employer. Additional criteria for costs of educational activities remaining eligible for co-funding is regular course attendance and successful validation of participant's learning. De-minimis regulation is applied.
Eligible costs
The contribution compensates for tuition fees/fees for participation (external providers), costs for internal training personnel, and costs of wages during training.
Volumes of funding
The budget for the project POVEZ II (support of employers' education activities) is CZK 3 500 000 000 (approx. EUR 129 548 000). The project lasts 7 years (1.12.2015-31.12.2022), so approximately CZK 500 000 000 (approx. EUR 20 000 000) is distributed annually on average. CZK 1 106 000 000 was disbursed in response to applications from the first call for applications, and there are three calls for applications in total. Of funds disbursed, CZK 656 000 000 (approx. EUR 24 281 008) were the costs of vocational education and training and CZK 450 000 000 (approx. EUR 16 656 179) were contributions for the participants' wages during training.
Beneficiaries/take up
52 215 employees in 4 700 enterprises were supported during the first call (2016-2018) of the project POVEZ II, 6 161 were 54+ (three calls are planned in total).
Organisation responsible for monitoring/evaluation
Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.
Monitoring/evaluation reports available
Not available
Most relevant webpage - in English
https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/atlas/programmes/2014-2020/czec…
Most relevant webpage - local language
https://esf2014.esfcr.cz/PublicPortal/Views/Projekty/Public/ProjektDeta…
Recent changes

No recent amendment

Recent changes in response to COVID-19

08-10-2020 Information related to the COVID-19 situation was published on the POVEZ II webpage. Conditions regulated by the Ministry of Health under which training can be provided are described. As contact among people must be minimized, all external education activities are canceled and online teaching is recommended.

Sources
Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, European Social Fund web portal, http://www.esfcr.cz/op-zamestnanost-2014-2020
Overarching portal for ESIF in the Czech Republic https://www.dotaceeu.cz/cs/jak-ziskat-dotaci/vyzvy/vyzvy-2014-2020/03-o…
Labour Office https://www.uradprace.cz/web/cz/podpora-odborneho-vzdelavani-zamestnanc…
Labour Office https://povez.uradprace.cz/?page=allocation
ESF portal, Operational Programme Employment, project POVEZ II https://esf2014.esfcr.cz/PublicPortal/Views/Projekty/Public/ProjektDeta…
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