4. Weak employer engagement at system level

Weak employer engagement means employers are only marginally involved—mainly consulted but not actively shaping training—while strong engagement means they act as active partners, co-designing training, validating skills, and contributing to work-based learning aligned with real labour-market needs.

STRATEGIC DIAGNOSTIC QUESTION

Are employers structurally involved beyond consultation?

Are employers actively involved in designing, delivering, and validating training programmes within the skills system, rather than only being consulted?

YES

NO

RECOMMENDATION

Reinforce incentives

Employer involvement is strong, but incentives (such as financial support or regulatory benefits) and partnerships (structured collaboration between employers, training providers, and public authorities) should be further reinforced to sustain and deepen their engagement.

RECOMMENDATION

Require employer co-ownership in Labs

Require employers to act as co-owners of Reskilling Labs, actively participating in design, delivery, and validation of training.

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Key National Policy Actions

Make employer participation mandatory for funded programmes

Make employer co-ownership a standard requirement, ensuring they help design pathways, validate skills, and offer work-based learning opportunities. Standard requirement means a formal rule set by national policy that must be applied in all cases—so employer co-ownership is not optional, but a mandatory part of how reskilling programmes are designed and delivered.

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Key National Policy Tools

State aid rules; tax incentives

State aid rules (public funding conditions that regulate how governments can support businesses) and tax incentives (financial benefits such as tax reductions) are used to encourage and formally structure employer participation in reskilling programmes.