Single European Railway Area of Skills Alliance

ongoing

The European rail sector is crucial for achieving the goals of the European Green Deal and achieving climate neutrality by 2050. However, the industry faces critical workforce shortages, driven by an ageing workforce, skill gaps, and difficulties in attracting young talent. Building on the long-term strategy and action plan and policy recommendations of the RAIL STAFFER Blueprint, the “Single European Railway Area of Skills Alliance” (SERAS) project will implement Blueprint by establishing a Pact for Skills in the Rail Sector, ensuring long-term impact in alignment with EU policies, instruments objectives. SERAS has the overarching goal of creating a sustainable and integrated European ecosystem for railway skills enhancement for the sector, ensuring a resilient, skilled, and mobile workforce across the EU. Key objectives are: ● Sustaining and expanding the Single European Railway Area of Skills Alliance by strengthening cooperation between industry, education providers, and social partners by a Rail Sector Pact for Skills, ensuring stable governance and long-term funding vis-à-vis main rail related EU institutions and players. ● Tackling workforce shortages and skills gaps by implementing the STAFFER action plan and policy recommendations of improving employability attractiveness, fostering diversity and promoting railway careers, especially for youth, women, and underrepresented groups. ● Providing skills intelligence and forecasting by implementing a comprehensive approach and methodology to anticipate workforce and skills needs in the railways sector. ● Create innovations in railway education and training by modular, micro-credential-based curricula aligned with European policy standards and tools and creating a European Rail Skills Academy. ● Promoting workforce mobility and recognition of skills in the Single European Rail Area by creating a European Rail Skills Academy and the mobility of initial learners, trainees, students, trainers and professional staff.