The European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) is undergoing its most radical transformation yet, introducing a new model aimed at better respond[ing] to the evolving needs of the EU institutions and the realities of today’s labour market. Following sustained criticism (including from the Ombudsman and the European Data Protection Supervisor) – ranging from outdated IT infrastructure, lack of transparency to excessive delays in competitions – EPSO is implementing a revamped selection process known as EPSOlution. May 2025 will be the end of the five-year roadmap set out in the EPSO magement plan. Continue reading EPSO’s Path to Recovery: A New Era for EU Competitions?
Newsletter-2025-02-12
The Lifeboats Are Full: EPSO Hands Recruitment to the Old Guard
The
European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) is undergoing its most radical transformation yet. The once-centralised recruitment body is officially splitting selection from recruitment, handing over the recruitment process to institutional HR services. This marks the full deployment of the new EPSO model, which removes EPSO’s role in recruitment and transfers hiring decisions to a new expert pool under the Commission’s control. Is this really the best way to address the recommendations of the European Court of Auditors, 2020, Special Report 23/2020: The European Personnel Selection Office: Time to adapt the selection process to changing recruitment needs? Continue reading The Lifeboats Are Full: EPSO Hands Recruitment to the Old Guard
The €900 Million Question: The Commission’s Building Sell-Off and Its Consequences
The European Commission has finalized the sale of 23 office buildings in Brussels for €900 million (Source), marking a significant shift in its real-estate strategy. This move is part of a broader plan to reduce office space by 25% by 2030, to streamline operations, and to align with evolving work habits. Continue reading The €900 Million Question: The Commission’s Building Sell-Off and Its Consequences
Navigating the rental market: A call for tenant protections and institutional support
Brussels, the heart of the European Union, welcomes thousands of newcomers every year: colleagues arriving to take up positions in the institutions. For many, across all Commission sites[1], securing a place to live is one of the first and most critical challenges they face[2]. However, navigating the complex rental system, understanding legal rights and obligations, and dealing with landlords who may not always act in good faith often turn what should be a straightforward process into a stressful and costly ordeal. Continue reading Navigating the rental market: A call for tenant protections and institutional support
Teleworking and Wellbeing: Time to put Human Care First!
*Update 26.08.2025 here’s the new link with instructions on how to encode those TWA days, note that even Blue Book trainees can have 5 days.*
Original article: Since 2020, Generation 2024 has been advocating for more flexible rules on teleworking, both from the place of employment and from everywhere. At the end of 2023, during the review of the Decision on Working Time and Hybrid Working (WTHW), the administration missed a key opportunity to sit at the table with the staff representatives to analyse results and negotiate some final modifications to the decision to address the issues that remained outstanding, such as the additional costs of working from home. Continue reading Teleworking and Wellbeing: Time to put Human Care First!
EEAS: The Future of Housing in EU Delegations: A Call for Fair and Transparent Reform
The housing policy for EU Delegations has long been a critical element in ensuring the efficiency, well-being, and security of staff posted to more than 144 locations across the globe. However, recent discussions about a potential reform of the housing policy have raised serious concerns among colleagues, particularly regarding the motivations behind this review and its potential impact on staff morale, effectiveness, and living conditions. Continue reading EEAS: The Future of Housing in EU Delegations: A Call for Fair and Transparent Reform
The Frosty Chronicles: Navigating the EU Institution’s Subzero Realities
As winter descended, so does the new norm for EU staff: embracing the glacial reality of a target of 19°C in Brussels workspaces (a balmy 20°C in Luxembourg), leaving many buildings well below those targets. HR sources cite national law of host Member State of EU institutions for this limit, suggesting that they would lower the temperatures further if the law allowed it. For those of you not in the loop, this provision ensures that public buildings toe the line in terms of energy-use reductions (‘efficiency’). But while the thermostat complies, it’s the staff who shiver. Jackets, scarves, and an abundance of hot tea have become unofficial office attire and tools of survival. Continue reading The Frosty Chronicles: Navigating the EU Institution’s Subzero Realities
10 Postulates for fairness – A better future for Contract Agents
Generation 2004 has been at the forefront of advocating for Contract Agents, consistently pushing for fairer employment conditions, better career prospects, and greater recognition of their contributions. Over the years, we have actively engaged with the administration, raising awareness of the systemic challenges contract agents face: barriers to career advancement, limited access to internal competitions, unfair contractual terms, and restricted mobility within the institution. Continue reading 10 Postulates for fairness – A better future for Contract Agents
Good news for Contract and Temporary Agents !
As Generation 2004 suggested Contract and Temporary agents will get a positive surprise in their February salary slip. Their unemployment contribution rate will drop down from 0.81% to 0.51%. This applies to EU institutions and bodies. This is not the result of some mysterious superpower of Generation 2004. Continue reading Good news for Contract and Temporary Agents !
Special leave for parents’ representatives in European Schools
Parents’ representatives devote a considerable amount of time for the benefit of the European Schools in general and our children in particular, covering aspects that do not require continuous intervention of parents in national schools (e.g. transport, canteen, representation in the Education Council and in the coordination bodies…). Continue reading Special leave for parents’ representatives in European Schools
