First Workshop of the Joint Project “Tackling Staff Shortages and Ensuring Future-proofing Skills in Health”

HOSPEEM and EPSU invites you to the first in-person workshop of the joint project on the topic of Mental Health and Work-Life Balance in Copenhagen, Denmark


Three o'clock 25 – 26 September 2025

PinScandic Copenhagen, Vester Søgade 6, 1602 Copenhagen, Denmark


The reimbursement for the flight and accommodation is available for the EU participants:

  • Please follow this link to calculate eligible travel costs
  • Maximum reimbursement for accommodation – 158 EUR/night (for up to 2 nights)

The interpretation will be provided for English, French, German, Spanish and Danish


Please register here

The registration deadline is 24 August 2025


Should you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact o.horlach@hospeem.eu

Join the Finance4EPSR project workshop, 17 January 2025 in Brussels

HOSPEEM, together with SGI Europe and HEAG, will organise the Finance4EPSR project workshop on 17 January 2025 in Brussels where the participants will discuss different aspects of sustainable finance. Online participation is possible.

The main meeting objectives are to deepen the knowledge about the practical impact of a social taxonomy into the business life of enterprises delivering services of general interest and to develop a methodology for guiding non-financial reporting to foster SGIs contributions towards the implementation of the EPSR.

Please register until 8 January 2025 here

Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee in hospital and healthcare sector is the first to endorse the Updated Guidelines to prevent third-party violence

Together with employers from central governments, local and regional governments, education and horeca sectors, HOSPEEM concluded negotiations with respective trade union counterparts to update the European Multi-sectoral Social Partners Guidelines to prevent and tackle third-party violence and harrassment related to work. Amongst others, the update introduces a gender-perspective to the topic and reflects the further digitalization that has occurred since 2010.

While the Social Dialogue Committee in the hospital and healthcare sector became the first to approve the content of the updated guidelines in November 2024, the text will be signed once all involved sectors have approved too.

Harnessing Talent Platform Working Groups in-person meeting

On 11 October 2024, the European Commission’s DG REGIO hosted partners of the Harnessing Talent Platform, a knowledge-building and experience-sharing initiative aimed at fostering dialogue among relevant stakeholders at the European, national, and regional levels. Since the establishment of four working groups in autumn 2023, focusing on Digital, Health, Research & Innovation, and Territorial issues, eleven issue papers have been published. These papers identify the scope of the challenges and propose actionable outputs.

This meeting brought together representatives from all working groups to discuss key issues, short- and long-term outcomes, and potential synergies within the platform and with other EU initiatives, such as the Pact for Skills, the European Cluster Collaboration Platform, and the Rural Revitalisation Platform.

In his opening remarks, François Gallaga (DG REGIO) emphasised that the competitiveness of the European economy depends on its ability to address current and future skills gaps. Following parallel meetings of the working groups, participants identified cross-cutting issues, reflected on external synergies, and discussed the next steps to deliver outputs in line with the work plan.

HOSPEEM is part of the Health Working Group, which focuses on the subtopic of improving service models and working conditions.

Learn more

HOSPEEM participates in the panel discussion during European Week of Regions

On 10 October 2024, Olena Horlach represented HOSPEEM at a panel discussion organized by the European Committee of the Regions’ Interregional Group on Health and Well-being, the European CoR’s Commission for Natural Resources (NAT), and EUREGHA – the reference network for European Regional and Local Health Authorities on the topic of “Strengthening Europe’s Healthcare Workforce: Attracting and retaining talent in a regional context” as part of the European Week of Regions.

Staff shortages, working conditions, and skills mismatches are having a significant impact on access to care and performance of healthcare system. Attracting and retaining talent across Europe’s regions is a key strategy to address this issue. This interactive session explored the difficulties and potential solutions for strengthening Europe’s healthcare workforce and increasing the sector’s attractiveness, in line with existing EU initiatives such as the Harnessing Talent Platform and the Pact for Skills.

HOSPEEM acknowledged that the main challenges include ageing population, work migration and working conditions amongst others. The EPSU-HOSPEEM Updated Framework of Action on Recruitment and Retention examines various remedies to these issues, while considering the 24/7 operational nature of the healthcare sector. Meanwhile, the EPSU-HOSPEEM Code of Conduct on Ethical Recruitment and Retention enables social partners in the hospital and healthcare sector address inequalities and promote ethical recruitment practices at European, national, regional and local level.

10 October 2024, 1143: Strengthening Europe’s Healthcare Workforce: Attracting and retaining talent in a regional context
Belgium – Brussels – October 2024
© European Union / John Thys

John Delamere speaks at online seminar of the cross-sectoral social partners on working time

HOSPEEM Vice-Secretary General John Delamere participated in a seminar of the cross-sectoral social partners on the topic “Shaping working time: role of collective bargaining” which explored the perspectives of social partners and addressed key priorities, including sector-specific needs related to working time, as well as the challenges and opportunities associated with working time organisation. The goal of the meeting was to promote mutual learning on policy initiatives and practical actions taken by social partners in this area.

During the seminar, John Delamere emphasised the challenges of hospital and healthcare employers in relation to the Working Time Directive and the organisation of working time in Europe, given the healthcare sector’s continuous operational nature, which often cannot align with rigid working time limits. Alongside other representatives of public service employers, John Delamere highlighted the difficulties in offering working time reductions in sectors experiencing labour shortages and an ageing workforce. The continuity of care and the need for timely emergency responses require a re-evaluation of rest periods and shift patterns, while also considering workers’ well-being and avoiding staff overburdening.

HOSPEEM Vice-Secretary General John Delamere speaks at the conference on the future EU Health Union

On 26-27 march 2024, HOSPEEM Vice-Secretary General John Delamere spoke at the high-level conference on the future EU health union organised by the Belgian Council presidency.

During the panel, he highlighted pressing challenges in the healthcare workforce, including ageing populations, labour and skills shortages. He also stressed the necessity of sharing best recruitment and retention practices. John Delamere noted that involvement of the social partners is highly important.

 

HOSPEEM participates at the high-level conference “Mental Health and Work” organised by the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union

On 30 and 31 January 2024, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of EU organised its high–level conference on mental health and work to bring attention to the challenges related to the attrition of mental health in European Workplaces.

The first day focused on “Prevention of psychosocial risks, stress and burnout at work”. The parallel session “Shaping Healthy Workplaces Together” brought together HOSPEEM and EPSU to present good practices from the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee in Hospital and Healthcare sector. Their joint projects approached mental health from different angles such as occupational safety and health and recruitment and retention. HOSPEEM Policy Officer Leonie Martin reported on the work done on joint initiatives of social partners together with Adam Rogalewski from EPSU.

Marta Branca at the Eurofound/ILO event on job quality for essential workers

On the occasion of the publication of the Eurofound policy brief on essential workers, HOSPEEM Secretary General Marta Branca participated in the social partner panel hosted by Eurofound and ILO, on 10 October 2023. She emphasized the importance of the developing Social Dialogue to address issues such as staff shortages, mental health and attractiveness of jobs in the healthcare sector.

European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights Nicolas Schmit highlighted the importance of key workers. The presentation of the ILO and Eurofound experts pointed out the challenges and possible solutions across the sectors of essential workers. At the beginning of the year HOSPEEM participated in the interview for the Eurofound policy brief. Read more. 

The Eurofound policy brief

ILO Report World Employment and Social Outlook 2023: The value of essential work

Joint HOSPEEM – EPSU Technical Seminar on Skills and Digitalisation – 30 November 2022

Digital Health Transformation of Integrated Care in Europe

Digital and non-digital skills of healthcare professionals

Examples from EU Sectoral Social Partners

The Seminar explored how digital solutions can support the integration of health and care services and will discuss which set of existing and emerging skills should be identified and developed. EU Sectoral Social Partners presented employers’ and workers’ current and future challenges in digital transformation.

Draft agenda as of 23.11.2022

Presentations by the EU Institutions:
Digital Health European Health Data Space (EHDS)” EC DG SANTE, Martin Dorazil
Digital skills for the health and care professionals” by: EC DG REFORM, Sasa Jenko – Health System Development Department, Ministry of Social Affairs, Estonia: Katre Trofimov and TIC Salut Catalonia, Spain, Elisenda Reixach

DG Reform Factsheet – Technical support for Health Reforms

Presentations of social partners examples from BE, CZ, FI and CY:

Belgium “Digital steps towards integrated care in Belgium” Peter Raeymaekers, Zorgnet–Icuro

Czech Republic “The preparedness of health care digitalization in the Czech Republic” Jiří Horecký, UZS ČR

Finland “Professionals Needed Competencies Developing Digital Health and Social Care Services- What kind of steps do we need to take in the lifelong learning process?” Outi Ahonen, Laurea University of Applied Sciences

Cyprus “Digitization in the Cypriot healthcare system – a sectoral and a national perspective” – Marios Karaiskakis, PASIN and National Committee on Digitalisation – (Coming soon)

The seminar took place online on 30 November 2022.

EPSU also published an event page about the webinar