Inclusive Labour Markets: SALAM Policy Exchange in Action

The SALAM project is making steady progress toward its goal of promoting inclusive and sustainable labour market integration across Europe. Building on its early work identifying regional policy needs, the project has now entered a new and dynamic phase focused on developing and adapting practical policy solutions.

This stage—called Policy Solutions—is built around a structured framework for mutual learning. It brings together project partners and local stakeholders to explore and exchange ideas on how to create more effective pathways for migrant inclusion in regional labour markets.

A Collaborative Approach to Policy Innovation

Led by the University of Florence and the European Association of Regional & Local Authorities for Lifelong Learning (EARLALL), this phase has been marked by productive exchanges among SALAM partners. Through bilateral and multilateral meetings, regions are learning from each other’s experiences and identifying good practices that can be adapted to their local contexts.

This peer-to-peer process will continue during the Participative Workshops taking place in Barcelona on 16–17 June 2025, where partners will further refine their strategies based on real-world insights.

From Identifying Needs to Sharing Solutions

Following local assessments of policy needs, partners began shaping tailored work plans and selecting good practices to explore further. Here are some highlights from the ongoing exchange activities:

• Regione Toscana (Italy) engaged with:
  • Municipality of Mark (Sweden) on:
    • Job Matching from Day 1
    • ÖDE – Increased Self-Sufficiency for Entrepreneurs with Mentoring
    • Cohesive Establishment and Labour Market Support
  • Public Employment Service of Catalonia (SOC) on the ACOL Line within the Work and Training Programme (Spain)
• Centre-Val de Loire (France) met with VHS (Germany) to explore the following Good Practices:
  • BEF Alpha
  • Tübinger Modell – The Workplace as a Language Learning Space
• Public Employment Service of Catalonia (SOC) also exchanged with VHS (Germany) on:
  • Landesnetzwerk Weiterbildungsberatung Baden-Württemberg (LN-WBB)
  • Partnerships with Employment Centres and Chambers of Commerce
• Mark Municipality (Sweden) exchanged with SOC (Spain), also involving the local stakeholder PIMEC on the Next Diversitat good practice (Spain) 
• Khotin Municipality (Ukraine) held exchanges with Regione Toscana on integrated policies across education, VET, employment, and social welfare.

Towards More Inclusive Regional Labour Markets

These knowledge-sharing activities are enabling regions to gain first-hand understanding of what works elsewhere—and how those lessons can be adapted to their own labour market systems. The focus remains on supporting vulnerable groups, particularly migrants, through targeted education, training, and employment services.

Further updates and detailed case examples from each exchange will be published in the coming months.

Looking Ahead

While these exchanges have already yielded valuable insights, the process remains ongoing. Partners will continue identifying relevant practices and fostering mutual learning to enhance policy effectiveness in their territories.

The SALAM project stands as a compelling example of how transnational cooperation, grounded in practical exchange, can lead to more inclusive and resilient labour markets across Europe.