Innovation Norway which is the Fund Operator for the Social Dialogue – Decent Work programme on behalf of the Financial Mechanisms Office (FMO) has published a Call for Travel Support. The objective of the Travel Support is to facilitate establishment of bilateral partnerships between eligible entities in the Beneficiary States and Norway with the intent to prepare joint project applications for funding under the Programme.
Entities from Beneficiary States and Norway can apply for funding. The applicants must be constituted as legal entities in the Beneficiary States or Norway. All information regarding the eligibility conditions are included in the Call text for Travel Support which could be read here.
Step 1 – Apply: An online application form is available here. Please note that a written approval from the fund operator Innovation Norway is required prior to your travel! Applications for Travel Support can be submitted on a continuous basis, until the available budget is exhausted.
Step 2 – Disbursement of funds and reporting: The Travel Support follows the reimbursement principle. The expenditures will be covered by the applicant from his own funds and a reimbursement request must be submitted to Innovation Norway after the travel. The reimbursement request is available here.
All applications or queries on the Social Dialogue – Decent Work programme should be addressed to the following official programme email address: decentwork@innovationnorway.no
About Social Dialogue – Decent Work
The objective of programme Social Dialogue – Decent Work is strengthened tripartite cooperation between employer organisations, trade unions and public authorities and the promotion of decent work. It will support social dialogue, contribute to ensure that Beneficiary States are better equipped to deal with the challenges following potential unemployment and to establish decent work practices, and improve the enforcement of legislation and policies on decent work and social dialogue. The Programme will also seek to stimulate and develop long‐term cooperation between Norway and Beneficiary States. Innovation Norway is the Fund Operator for the programme on behalf of the Financial Mechanisms Office (FMO).
A call for project proposals, which is currently under development, will be published by Innovation Norway in each Beneficiary State.
The programme is structured according to the following outcomes:
- Improved social dialogue and cooperation ‐ the focus is to strengthen the capacity of social partners to participate in both tripartite and bipartite social dialogue through transfer of best practices and training. Capacity‐building projects can range from very direct measures, e.g. set up structures for social dialogue and support the conclusion of collective agreements, to more indirect measures like creating a social dialogue‐friendly environment, e.g. for discussing undeclared work and social dumping. Projects can also focus on increasing the capacity of national social partners to take part in EU level social dialogue, and to familiarise the players with EU legislation and the impact it has on their work.
- Enhanced implementation of the decent work agenda (fair and decent working conditions) ‐ the focus is to finance projects at national and sector level with the objective to use bipartite and tripartite dialogue in the implementation of the decent work agenda and raise awareness of the benefits of decent work, e.g. work‐life balance, gender equality and non‐discrimination, attitudes on health and safety, knowledge about rights and obligations and the fight against undeclared work and social dumping (work‐related crime). The programme will support awareness‐raising activities and training on decent work topics addressing e.g. social partner staff, company health and safety officers, and labour inspectors. In addition, cooperation between public authorities in the Beneficiary States and Norway, particularly between labour inspection authorities, will be supported.
- Facilitated access to employment ‐ the target is to improve the cooperation between the social partners and public authorities on labour market challenges by supporting activities facilitating access to employment, including for young people and disadvantaged groups like women, elderly support from the bilateral budget and disabled people. These activities can take the form of active labour market policy measures, life‐long learning and activities related to labour market challenges (experience‐sharing and awareness‐raising). This focus area is limited to the following countries which expressed needs and challenges related to access to employment: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
All questions on the Social Dialogue – Decent Work programme should be addressed to the following official programme email address: decentwork@innovationnorway.no