Delivering on the European Green Deal A Private Sector Perspective 2025

Transition planning and managementReskilling for renewablesProviding focused financial aid German Ruhr region transformationPolish coal miners become wind techniciansFrench Transco reskilling programme The Ruhr region’s transition from coal, iron and steel industries is a successful example of industrial transformation. In 1957, these sectors employed about 800,000 people, around 70% of the region’s workforce. By 2007, over 400,000 jobs were liquidated. Despite that, total employment levels remained stable due to effective structural policies. Early efforts focused on technological modernization and support for workers facing job losses. A sector- expertise approach was then implemented. A pivotal move was the establishment of higher education institutions and technology centres, branding the Ruhr as a “knowledge region”. Enablers of this transition were consistent government engagement, strong social partnership participation, public investment in education and innovation, cooperative institutional restructuring, and active labour market policies.160EDF Renewables Polska launched a reskilling programme in 2023 designed to assist Polish coal miners to transition to the renewable energy sector, focusing on technical roles in wind turbine operation and maintenance. The free two-week programme covers safety protocols, first aid, fire awareness and specialized training in operating suspended platforms and overhead cranes. The curriculum includes a visit to a wind farm and acquiring practical hands-on experience. The programme is accredited by the Global Wind Organisation and provides globally recognized certification that allows miners to engage in wind energy projects worldwide. The programme also integrates job placements, including sessions where miners can meet with potential employers and participate in job interviews, enhancing their chances of employment.161Launched in January 2021, the French Transitions Collectives (Transco) scheme assists employees in sectors and regions facing job shortages, like healthcare, construction and digital technology. Companies, depending on their size, either unilaterally or through negotiation, set up agreements outlining at-risk jobs and training plans for employees. Transco has two main components: Transitions collectives – supports employees retraining for new roles by maintaining their salaries during the training period. Participants have the option to return to their original company post-training. Transco – Congé de mobilité allows for training during the employment transition; salary costs are shared between the employer and the state. To support these efforts, the French government has established platforms across the country, coordinating between employers, training providers and local government bodies.162TABLE 7 Workforce transformation case studies Source: European Commission, Notes from Poland, Transco. Mitigating impact Due to regional differences in the job market, efforts supporting equal employment growth across Europe will be needed, including taking job churn into account when supporting the placement of new industries across Europe. Changes to the job market will have either a frictional effect, meaning they will move to other industries within a largely similar scope of work; or be more structural in nature, due to their high specialization, which will require significant reskilling or relocation. Ensuring a just transition will subsequently require tailored approaches for regions impacted by the phasing out of carbon intensive jobs, including the development of new industrial sectors. The German Ruhr region is a good example of mitigating structural changes to the job market by building policies that encourage sectoral diversity to protect workers and mitigate losses from economic changes in specific industries.163 To tackle the changes awaiting the job markets, public and private actors will need to work together to mitigate the impact, implementing pre-emptive interventions in addition to more temporary solutions. Pre-transition actions can happen at the employer level through reskilling programmes as well as at the regional or national levels through education policy. They can also include forward-looking employment plans made by companies to prepare for large-scale layoffs. Temporary solutions include any actions that aim to mitigate the immediate impacts of layoffs, such as income support and social protection. There are also reskilling and upskilling initiatives that can foster demand for new roles for which people might be requalified. It is important to establish a business environment that supports green investments, which will create sector-specific but also generalist roles (e.g. accounting, administration, IT etc.).164,165,166 Collaboration between the public and private sectors will be crucial for successfully managing workforce transitions. On the public policy side, job transition assistance, including search, training, and temporary financial support, will be central. On the private sector side, proactive reskilling within companies and cooperation with government to manage larger layoffs will be critical. Initiatives like the French Transco programme are good examples of de-risking reskilling programmes through public social security schemes;167 the private sector must also commit to ensuring the job security of their workforce. This will be challenging, as evidenced by the failure of recent efforts to provide such job assurances to European natural gas sector workers.168 To ensure social inclusion in the green transition, public-private collaboration will be imperative. Delivering on the European Green Deal: A Private Sector Perspective 28