UNICARE

Background

There are two main sectoral activities in Personal and Household Services (PHS): social care and household support, yet with a possible growing overlap between the two. 
Current societal developments such as changes to family structures increase the need for PHS. Furthermore, the unprecedented and general ageing of our society increases demand for home help and care services.
 

Objective

The overarching objective of the Ad-PHS project (Grant agreement No. VS/2018/0344) is to lead to the creation of a platform of relevant PHS stakeholders at EU level. Its main goal is to create a single point-of-contact to support, guide and provide advice to Public Authorities in the development of their PHS policies. 
 

What will we do?

By bringing the main European stakeholders together, the project will aim to improve both the theoretical and practical understanding of PHS policies (including their diversity) among European Member States, in particular where such policies are more limited or do not exist. This project will create the necessary means through which the different stakeholders can build trust and develop common instruments; which will be crucial for the creation of a European platform for stakeholders; able to provide targeted guidance and advice to public authorities in the years to come. On the long run, it is expected that this will lead to more and better public policies in the field of PHS throughout Europe; therefore, helping to mitigate the challenges and maximise the opportunity for workers, employers and beneficiaries alike. This goes without mentioning the millions of new decent jobs which could be created in the years to come, if the right public policies are developed.
 

Duration

December 2018 - May 2020
 

Partners

Coordinator: EASPD

• Goethe University Frankfurt Am Main - Institute for Economics, Labour and Culture (IWAK)
• European Federation for Service to Individuals (EFSI)
• European Federation for Family Employment (EFFE)
• UNI Europa
• European Federation of Trade Unions in the Food, Agriculture and Tourism sectors and allied branches (EFFAT)
• DIESIS COOP

Deliverables

The final results of the project will be the following:

Reports
Report "Personal and Household Services in the EU: State of Play"
Report "Promising Practices in Personal and Household Services"
21 Country Reports

Guidelines
Guidelines for developing social dialogue structures in Personal and Household Services
Guidelines for developing service voucher systems
Guidelines for developing professional profiles
Guidelines for evaluating rights and obligations of stakeholders
Guidelines for developing digital platforms & networks
Guidelines for developing workers cooperatives

National workshops and seminars in 21 European countries.

Contact

Mark Bergfeld, Director of Property Services and UNICARE  mark.bergfeld@uniglobalunion.org