Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142) - Czechia (Ratification: 1993)

Article 1(5) of the Convention. Formulation and implementation of education and training policies and programmes. The Committee notes with interest the detailed information provided by the Government on the various policies and vocational guidance programmes, including the Long-term Plan for Education and the Development of the Education System in the Czech Republic 2015–20 (DMI 2015–20), approved by Government resolution No. 277 of 15 April 2015. The DMI 2015–20 is based on the prior long-term plan and, in line with the Strategy for the Education Policy in the Czech Republic by 2020, sets out the main objectives for regional education, which include support for secondary vocational education. The Government indicates that the objectives of the 2020 Strategy include the provision of individualized career counselling for young people and adults wanting to return to formal or further education, modernization of the vocational training system to enhance the development of knowledge, skills and competencies, including through increased practical training, as well as systemic use of internships and social partnerships between schools and employers to facilitate the transition from school to work. Moreover, the Committee notes the incentives provided to employers by the Government, in particular the 2015 amendment to the income tax, which introduced tax breaks for companies engaged in the provision of education in vocational schools. In addition, the Government has implemented the Modernisation of Vocational Training (MVT) project, which seeks to enhance the quality of vocational education in secondary school through educational programmes and increasing employers’ participation in the formation of the curriculum. The Government indicates that, pursuant to Act No. 179/2006 Coll; a system of verification and recognition of knowledge and skills acquired outside of the education system, including through informal education, is being established in cooperation with professional organizations. The Government indicates that employers’ representatives were involved in the development of the National Qualification System (NQS) through a network of sector councils, adding that 1,234 professional qualifications were established in the NQS as of June 2018. The Government reports that, in 2017, the Master Examination System project of the National Institute for Education (NIE) was launched. The project aims to set up a system for the recognition of handicrafts by providing the possibility of acquiring a master’s qualification certificate in the same manner as a certificate of professional qualifications. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the vocational guidance system and career counselling within the framework of school education, including lifelong career counselling through the “Man and the World of Work” project, as well as career counselling provided at the Career Counselling Centre (CCC) of the NIE. The Government reports that the CCC provides vocational guidance for school leavers, persons with disabilities, minorities and other disadvantaged groups. The Government reports that the Framework Educational Programme (FEP) was also launched in 2017, with the objective of supporting lifelong learning and skills development for students. In the context of career consultancy, the Committee notes that, in the first half of 2018, the Information and Consultancy Centres (ICCs) organized 2,705 events for a total of 18,908 jobseekers, students and parents. In addition, the Employment Office of the Czech Republic (EOCR) organized information meetings on the subject of retraining and other forms of active employment policy measures for 53,223 persons. Moreover, 86,906 persons benefited from individual vocational guidance. In addition, in 2018, 1,450 persons benefited from 160 consultancy programmes implemented as a part of the Job Club programme. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy provides retraining through the EOCR, with the aim of responding to regional market needs and addressing qualification gaps in the future labour market. The retraining system has been linked with the NQS, constituting a significant change that enables participants to obtain a complete professional qualification. Based on the demand of employers and jobseekers, the courses include: driving, welding, engineering, computer literacy, accounting and social services. In order to provide additional incentives for retraining, EOCR funds selected retraining courses that cater to individual needs as well as covering the cost of retraining employees. In 2017, EOCR funds supported retraining for 18,174 persons. The Committee requests the Government to provide updated, detailed information, including statistics disaggregated by age and sex, on the impact of the vocational guidance and training policies and programmes implemented. Moreover, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which it ensures women’s access to training in non-female-dominated professions. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the results of the Modernisation of Vocational Training project and progress made in respect of the development and impact of the Framework Educational Programme (FEP). In addition, the Committee reiterates its prior request that the Government provide extracts from reports, studies and inquiries and statistical data relating to the matters covered by the Convention (Part VI of the report form).

Articles 1(5) and 3. Equality of opportunity. Extension of systems of vocational guidance to specific groups of workers. The Committee notes the 2015 report of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD/C/CZE/CO/1), which took note of the high unemployment rate of persons with disabilities in the Czech Republic, observing that the unemployment rate of women with disabilities is higher than that of men with disabilities, and that close to one third of employed persons with disabilities work outside the labour market. The Committee further notes that, in its 2016 report (CEDAW/C/CZ/CO/6), the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women took note of the concentration of women in traditionally female-dominated professions and in the informal economy in the Czech Republic. In its 1991 General Survey on human resources development, paragraphs 285–286, the Committee noted that vocational guidance plays a decisive role in the promotion of equal opportunity, and that it is possible through vocational guidance services to overcome stereotypes limiting choice of occupation, for example through programmes to encourage women to follow training courses traditionally available only to men. The Committee recalls that the Convention provides that the national policies and programmes of vocational guidance and vocational training, closely linked to employment, shall encourage all persons, on an equal basis and without any discrimination whatsoever, to develop and use their capabilities for work in their own interests and in accordance with their own aspirations, account being taken of the needs of society (Article 1(5)). Information and guidance provided shall cover, inter alia, the choice of occupation, vocational training and employment prospects (Article 3(2)). Noting the importance of vocational guidance, vocational education and training to facilitate access to the labour market, particularly to decent jobs, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which it ensures that specific groups of workers who encounter difficulties in obtaining employment, such as young persons, women and persons with disabilities, enjoy equal access to vocational guidance, education and training opportunities. In particular, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged for the provision of vocational guidance, education and training that enables both men and women, including those belonging to specific disadvantaged groups, to access the labour market (including in non-traditional sectors of the economy).

Article 5. Cooperation of employers’ and workers’ organizations. In its 2013 direct request, the Committee requested the Government to provide information regarding the manner in which the cooperation of employers’ and workers’ organizations and other interested bodies is ensured in relation to the formulation and implementation of vocational guidance and vocational training policies and programmes, including the National Register of Vocational Qualifications (NSK) and the International Competiveness Strategy for Czech Republic 2012–2020 (ICS). The Government indicates that the NSK, in which employers exercise decisive influence on the qualifications content, completed its second phase “NSK 2 – development and implementation of the NSK” in 2015. The system of retraining is currently being implemented as a follow-up to the NSK to align labour market needs with active employment policy tools. The Committee notes that, according to the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP), up to October 2017, 171,164 vocational qualification certifications had been issued to jobseekers and 1,359 authorizing bodies had been certified. The Government indicates that, from 2012 to 2015, it partnered with employers to implement a programme on “Supporting Cooperation between Schools and Companies with a Focus on Vocational Training in Practice”, which aimed to strengthen cooperation between schools and employers and facilitate the transition from school to work. The Committee notes that one of the objectives of the 2020 Strategy and the DMI 2015–2020 is to promote the development of social partnerships between schools and employers. The Committee recalls its 2018 observations on the application of the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), in which it noted that the Czech Public Employment Service establishes advisory councils which meet at least twice a year and are composed of representatives of trade unions, employers’ organizations, cooperative bodies, organizations of persons with disabilities, the Czech Chamber of Commerce and self-governing territorial units, to coordinate the implementation of the employment policy and human resources development in their respective administrative districts. The Committee notes that the Government has not provided information on the implementation of the ICS. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the formulation and implementation of vocational guidance and vocational training policies and programmes, including the ICS, and to indicate the manner in which these are carried out in cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations and other interested bodies, as required by the Convention. It also requests the Government to indicate the manner in which workers are consulted in the process of development of new policies, and to provide up-to-date information on the activities and the impact of the work of the advisory councils on human resources development in all areas of the country.