The purpose of project “Work 4.0 - future job market” is to introduce students of vocational education and training to changes in the labor market according to trends defined by Industry 4.0, what represents the fourth industrial revolution in manufacturing and industry. Industry 4.0 is the current industrial transformation with automation, data exchanges, cloud, cyber-physical systems, robots, Big Data, AI, IoT and (semi-)autonomous industrial techniques to realize smart industry and manufacturing goals in the intersection of people, new technologies and innovation. This is a follow up project to the Erasmus+ strategic partnership "Promote Your Employability" among Valmieras tehnikums and Berufskolleg Halle. The project concentrates on youth preparing for entering a labor market after graduation from vocational education and training school. The last step of this project is to introduce future perspectives of the labor market to young specialists. Invited experts and HR specialists stressed the importance to be flexible in the labor market. However students are not ready for that yet, they have a lack of information and understanding how Industry 4.0 could affect the labor market in Latvia and Germany in particular and EU overall. Such understanding is crucial for students as they are future members of the common labor market. Schools' curricula do not include such topics, but it is very important to inform new specialists in all professions connected to industrial fields. During this project teaching material will be created. This material will contain information about Industry 4.0. effects on the labor market in each of the two countries involved in the project and in the EU overall. This is a very useful part of educational content in many vocational education and training programs such as business administration, accounting, IT, mechatronics and logistics. Currently, this further perspective is missing. There will be research done in several programs (fields) provided in Valmieras tehnikums and Berufskolleg Halle. Comparison will be made to see the differences among a founding EU memeber state (Germany) and a newer member state (Latvia). The project's objective is to involve students of vocational education in finding answers to the questions "What are the perspective and challenges in the future labor market", "What key competences do students need to adapt", "How can the educational system and teachers support students in this, preparing them for entering a labor market". The main target group in this project are students from two vocational education and training schools in Latvia and Germany. Overall 24 students (15-17 years old) will be involved in project activities. They will be supervised by 4 teachers. In a consulting and project material creation part school methodologists and experts from industrial companies will be involved. At local and national level HR specialists from these companies will be invited to take part in meetings and/or surveys conducted by students. As a result material for school lessons on the topic "Work 4.0. in main educational fields provided in particular schools will be created. These lessons would be integrated in all connected educational programs at Valmieras tehnikums and Berufskolleg Halle. As schools have to prepare students for the labor market, it is crucial to talk with students about future trends, so they have up-to-date knowledge and could be beneficial to industry after their graduation. In doing so further strengthening key competences in VET will be fostered. The development of analytical thinking and skills by collecting information and adapting it for further use in lessons will be promoted. Students will do research in public information, attend eligible conferences or professional enterprises and meet experts of the topic Industry 4.0. Relevant and high-quality skills and competences will be developed: supporting individuals in acquiring and developing basic skills and key competences in order to foster employability and socio-educational and personal development. Students will receive Europass Mobility document for participation. It will certify accomplished tasks, gained knowledge and developed competences. To disseminate project results public platform with project information and materials will be created on TwinSpace. So the results of the project "Work 4.0" will be available for students and teachers further on. For Valmieras tehnikums and Berufskolleg Halle material will be specified according to research done during the project with situation analysis in each particular county - Germany as a founding country and Latvia as a comparatively newer EU country. Also there will be information about common trends in the EU and global changes. With the help of these tools teachers in different vocational education programs will have the opportunity to provide students with up-to-date information which reflects the labor market's needs.
In finding answers to the following questions: what are the perspectives and challenges of the future labor market" what key competences do students need to adapt? how can the educational system and teachers support students in this, preparing them for entering a labor market?, in 2018-2021, with the participation of four teachers and 28 students (aged 16-19) from Valmiera Technical College (Latvia) and Berufskolleg Halle (Germany), the project "Work 4.0 - future job market" was implemented. Within the framework of this, the learners had the opportunity to get acquainted with the Industry 4.0 concept both by meeting with experts in the field, getting acquainted with automation processes in different companies, and working with information sources of different scope and content. Erasmus+ project “Work 4.0 – future job market” gave participating students ideas about the future job requirements, like being ready for constant change, being ready to always learning something new and being ready for things we cannot imagine yet. The COVID19 pandemic has also brought about changes in the daily lives of humankind, where work-life balance plays an important role.To achieve this flexibility and to adapt with rapid change, it is great to be able to work with a huge amount of information: gathering, summarizing and making conclusions. Therefore, within the framework of the project "Work 4.0 - future job market", professionals - educators developed a methodological material, which in the form of a set of successive activities is reflected in how to organize a quality learning process, which emphasizes Industry 4.0. theme.