Leveling the playing field

The results of over 90 Polish projects within the EU Equal program, which helps small and medium-sized enterprises adapt to the changing economy and labor market, will now set models for the future Human Capital Operational Program in the new 2007 to 2013 financing period. Last week representatives from Belgium, Greece, Ireland, Poland and a few other EU countries gathered to discuss their experiences.

"The transformation and restructuring of the economy, as well as globalization processes, have greatly affected the labor market," says Jerzy Kwieciński, Deputy Minister of Regional Development. "The labor market has to be up to the challenge. Also enterprises and employees have to adapt to the changes. We would like the financial operations within the EU Equal initiative to respond to the challenges of the changing economy."

The Equal program is designed to develop projects to help equalize employment opportunities within societal groups that could experience difficulties accessing the market. The programs are usually developed and tested on groups ranging from five to 500 people, after which the best solutions are put into practice and other companies are given free access to them.