How companies can send employees to training for free

As of this year employers can no longer access EU money to train their employees, with the only private companies eligible for EU funding for HR being providers of training programmes. The managing authority in charge of HR funds yesterday announced the launch of funding lines for 2010, with the overall available funds amounting to around 600 million euros.
There are three ways for employees in private companies to receive EU-funded training: if the employer is a member of an employers' association that accessed EU money for the training of employees in the respective sector of business, or if the company's employees are members of a trade union that won an EU-funded project for professional training. A third possibility for a company's employees to be trained with EU money is for the company to resort to the services of a training firm that has accessed HR funds. This year's potential beneficiaries will be able to submit projects starting in August.