The high rate of youth unemployment is a problem throughout Europe. After their apprenticeship many youngsters are facing difficulties finding a job. In many cases the reason is a very theoretical training system, that lacks practical orientation. In order to foster a work-place-oriented VET-system the Bildungswerk der Bayerischen Wirtschaft (bbw) gGmbH carries out the project „Work-Based Learning in the Field of Cutting Mechanics: Introducing VET Multipliers to Alternate Work-Based Learning in Romania and Slovakia“ in Kronstadt (Romania) and Kischützneustadt (Slovakia). The companies Dräxlmaier and Ina Schaeffler such as the VET centers Scoala Profesionala Germana Kronstadt and Stredna odborna skola strojnicka are taking part as project partners. The project will be realized from 01.09.2015 until 01.09.2018. Initial local cooperation structures are already established. The companies have been cooperating with the VET-centers in order to implement a vocational training course for cutting mechanics with a dual character. The project aims to increase labor market relevance of the apprenticeship, which is to become more practical and action-orientated. Within the frame of the project the necessary know how is supposed to be transfered. From September 2015 on the training of cutting mechanics will be carried out in the companies as well. During the course of the project until 2018 cooprative structures will be extended in order to establish a vocational training with a focus on strong employment-related components. The project contributes to a higher willingness of the companies to offer apprentices a permanent contract and facilitates the trainees the access to the labor market. The employability of the youngsters will be improved and therefore the risk of unemployment will be minimized. In order to achieve those goals trainers of the respective project partner institutions will be trained in the field of practical-oriented training methods. These trainings will take place for teachers of VET-centers and trainers of companies such as for managers of the project partners. Furthermore there will be a training trip to Germany to learn on-site about the dual VET-training system. In total round about 80 multipliers of the Romanian and Slovakian project partners will take part in those trainings. Additionally teaching and test material will be elaborated that follow the guidelines of EC VET. The utilization of European instruments for Vocational Education enhance transparency between the different VET systems and contents in the different production sites and countries. The project is expected to contribute to an improvement of the work-oriented professional education and to increase the labor market relevance. At the same time it fosters die employability of the youngsters and offers them better perspectives on the labor market. The project will deliver examples of direct cooperation between VET-centers and companies which can be reproduced on other sites. This is how there will be created an overall comprehension for work-based learning in the European countries. Alongside the use of EU tools will contribute to a higher degree of transparency and simplifies the comparison of competences on the European labor market.
The problem of increased youth unemployment is a transnational problem in Europe. For many young people it is difficult to enter employment after their training. The reason for this is a mostly very schooled training system that is not very oriented towards real work processes. The project partners the Bildungswerk der Bayerischen Wirtschaft (bbw) gGmbH, the companies Dräxlmaier, INA Schaeffler and Stabilus, as well as the vocational schools Scoala Profesionala Germana Kronstadt and Stredna odborna skola strojnicka at the locations Brasov (Romania) and Kysucke Novo Mestp (Slovakia) led the project "Work-Based Learning in the Field of Cutting Mechanics: Introducing VET Multipliers to Alternate Work-Based Learning in Romania and Slovakia". The project had a duration of 36 months, from 01.09.2015 to 01.09.2018. The first local cooperation structures were already in place before the start of the project. For some years now, the companies have been working together with the vocational schools on the implementation of an apprenticeship in cutting mechanics. The project increased the labour market relevance of this training by introducing dual elements and deepened the cooperation between the training company and the vocational school. The aim was to make the training more practice-oriented and action-oriented. Within the framework of the project, appropriate know-how was exchanged and the close cooperation between the partners ensured a long-term cooperation. According to feedback from the partners, the project contributed to a stronger willingness to take on trainees on the part of the training companies and facilitated the transition to employment for the training graduates. The higher priority was thus given to promoting the employability of young job seekers and indirectly reducing the risk of youth unemployment. In addition, the various measures taken to disseminate the project experience (e.g. website, posters, presentations) not only aroused interest in the project, but also, based on feedback from the partners, ensured increased interest in the multiplication of the results by colleagues and other interested parties. In order to achieve the goals, further training courses and workshops on practice-oriented training methods and 2 workshops on the dual training system in Germany were carried out within the framework of the project. These took place for vocational school teachers as well as company trainers and managers of the project partners. In addition, existing teaching and testing materials were revised and modernised. The regular feedback from participants and partners on the activities and the course of the project was positive and most of the suggestions for improvement were implemented at an early stage. The project is in line with the objectives of the "Europe 2020" strategy. It aimed to improve education systems, thereby laying the foundations for a competitive, sustainable industrial sector and reducing the discrepancy between the demand for skilled workers and the training of skilled workers.