FAQ on working for the EU
See also: cialis |
Many of you have sent us specific questions and comments about how confused you were with the different types of categories and contracts on offer by the EU and as a result, were not sure about the different conditions involved.
All EU permanent officials are selected by means of open competitions that are published in the Official Journal of the European Union and on the EPSO web site :
http://europa.eu/epso/
EPSO cannot consider any applications or CVs that are submitted outside the framework of an official competition. All relevant information about recruitment for the EU institutions can be found on the EPSO web site.
In addition, the EU institutions also take on a limited number of temporary and auxiliary staff as well as a few agency staff on a fixed-term contract. By 30 April 2006, it was envisaged that temporary and auxiliary staff contracts would be replaced by new type of contracts, and non-permanent staff known as contractual agents.
What do current temporary agents in the Commission do?
Temporary agents may be employed to perform a wide variety of tasks, within one of the following categories:
(a) for non-standard (highly specialised jobs) or temporary tasks;
(b) to make up for staff shortages in cases where competition reserve lists have been exhausted ;
(c) for Commissioners' private offices ('cabinets');
(d) for specific requirements in the scientific sector.
As a temporary agent in type (d), you could work in one of the various research centres set up by the EU to promote research and to manage European framework programmes for research and development. As a temporary agent in type (c), you could work in the private office of a Commissioner during their term in office.
Temporary agents in types (a) and (b) can be employed to do a wide variety of work, essentially the same kind of work as permanent Commission officials. However, this depends on factors such as the temporary needs of the Commission and the situation with regard to filling vacant posts.
Where can I find out about temporary agent posts?
If a Directorate-General wants to recruit a temporary agent for a highly-specialised job or temporary task (type a), they will send the job notice and the profile of the person they are looking to recruit to the Permanent Representations of the Member States and also publish it on the EPSO website. They may also publish the vacancy on their own DG website; so it is worth checking these sites regularly if there is a particular DG where you would particularly like to work.
You can also apply to be a temporary agent by introducing your details into the EU CV online database (or the ELSA database, if you are interested in the research field).
Once you have been recruited as a temporary agent, you will be graded according to the type of post you occupy, and your previous professional experience.
Although the rules on the length of initial contracts and subsequent contract extensions vary, as a rule, temporary agents in types (a), (b) and (d) may be hired by the Commission for a maximum period of six years and temporary agents who work in Commissioner's private offices are hired for a duration linked to the mandate of their Commissioner.
Temporary agents take part in the annual staff appraisal system that applies to permanent officials.
Your salary, benefits, and working conditions as a temporary agent are essentially the same as those of permanent officials. This covers the range of family allowances (including expatriation allowance), social security benefits such as medical insurance and pensions (pension rights are accumulated on the same basis as permanent officials), tax conditions, family-related leave, annual leave and working hours. Find out more in the section Permanent Officials.
As a temporary agent you may also be entitled to a temporary unemployment allowance, when your contract expires. For more information see Title 2 (Temporary Agents) in the Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Communities.
For more specific information please see the Staff Regulation of Officials of the European Communities link below;
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/docs/toc100_en.pdf
The Commission employs staff on a temporary basis, mainly for secretarial work, on short term contracts through temping agencies.
Start People Rue Montoyer, 40B-1000 BruxellesTel : 02/234.64.20Fax : 02/234.64.29
E-mail : eu@startpeople.be
Vedior Rue Montoyer, 41B-1000 BruxellesTel.
E-mail : ec@vedior.be
Unique Avenue des Arts, 57 AB-1000 BruxellesTel.
E-mail : ec@unique.be
Luxembourg ;
VEDIOR Interim 5 place de la Gare L-1616 Luxembourg Tel.
ADECCO 26 place de la GareL-1616 LuxembourgTel.
MANPOWER 44, route d'Esch L-1470 LuxembourgTel.
Specific questions on CAST25/27 as a contract agent;
I'm in the CAST 25 database; am I obliged to participate also in CAST 27?
If a candidate is already in the database of CAST 25, the validity of which continues to the end of the three years, he/she is not obliged to participate in the CAST 27 selection but may do so even in a different profile and function group; in this case, successful candidates will be listed under 2 different profiles.
What type of contract can I expect?
There are two sub-categories of contract agent;
The first covers those who are hired to work:- in Commission Directorates-General and all other Institutions to do manual or administrative support-service tasks (Function Group I) ; - in Commission Offices attached to a Directorate-General, such as the two Offices for Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels and Luxembourg and the Paymasters Office; - in Agencies; - in Commission Representations and Delegations. As a contract agent of this type (contract staff "3a") you would enjoy longer-term employment prospects, with an initial contract running for a maximum period of five years and renewable for a maximum of five years. The contract can be converted into a contract of indefinite duration.
The second sub-category covers contract agents that can be hired to work in Commission's DGs and other Institutions dealing with other tasks than manual and administrative support tasks (contract staff "3b"). That is to say, they are recruited:- temporarily to replace officials absent due to illness, maternity leave, etc.; - as a response to acute staff shortages at times of intense work pressure; - to undertake work for a temporary period providing additional capacity in specialised fields where officials with the required skills are not available. As a contract agent of this type, you would have short-term employment prospects, working on the basis of contracts running up to a maximum of three years. The minimum length of contract is three months.
Can a contractual position lead automatically to permanent employment?
No. Permanent recruitment is only possible via open competitions.
Is there a quota system for recruiting candidates of each Member State?
There is no national quota system for European civil servants, but the Institutions aim to recruit a broad geographical balance among the different Member States.
All contracts offered are managed directly by the Institutions, services or agencies concerned on a case- by-case basis and they are independent from the Office’s activities and principle mission.
Tips
Constantly check the EPSO website for all the latest calls for open competitions in order to get as organised as possible.
Preparatory courses
Member States - via their Permanent Representation office or other relevant organisation within their home country - sometimes organise courses aimed at training EU nationals for the European Institutions' open competitions. These courses are the sole responsibility of the Member State/accession country concerned and are entirely independent of the Selection Office.
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/docs/toc100_en.pdf
All information given is provided in the following external links;
http://europa.eu/epso/index_en.htm
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/job/temp/index_en.htm
Many of you have sent us specific questions and comments about how confused you were with the different types of categories and contracts on offer by the EU and as a result, were not sure about the different conditions involved.
All EU permanent officials are selected by means of open competitions that are published in the Official Journal of the European Union and on the EPSO web site :
http://europa.eu/epso/
EPSO cannot consider any applications or CVs that are submitted outside the framework of an official competition. All relevant information about recruitment for the EU institutions can be found on the EPSO web site.
In addition, the EU institutions also take on a limited number of temporary and auxiliary staff as well as a few agency staff on a fixed-term contract. By 30 April 2006, it was envisaged that temporary and auxiliary staff contracts would be replaced by new type of contracts, and non-permanent staff known as contractual agents.
What do current temporary agents in the Commission do?
Temporary agents may be employed to perform a wide variety of tasks, within one of the following categories:
(a) for non-standard (highly specialised jobs) or temporary tasks;
(b) to make up for staff shortages in cases where competition reserve lists have been exhausted ;
(c) for Commissioners' private offices ('cabinets');
(d) for specific requirements in the scientific sector.
As a temporary agent in type (d), you could work in one of the various research centres set up by the EU to promote research and to manage European framework programmes for research and development. As a temporary agent in type (c), you could work in the private office of a Commissioner during their term in office.
Temporary agents in types (a) and (b) can be employed to do a wide variety of work, essentially the same kind of work as permanent Commission officials. However, this depends on factors such as the temporary needs of the Commission and the situation with regard to filling vacant posts.
Where can I find out about temporary agent posts?
If a Directorate-General wants to recruit a temporary agent for a highly-specialised job or temporary task (type a), they will send the job notice and the profile of the person they are looking to recruit to the Permanent Representations of the Member States and also publish it on the EPSO website. They may also publish the vacancy on their own DG website; so it is worth checking these sites regularly if there is a particular DG where you would particularly like to work.
You can also apply to be a temporary agent by introducing your details into the EU CV online database (or the ELSA database, if you are interested in the research field).
Once you have been recruited as a temporary agent, you will be graded according to the type of post you occupy, and your previous professional experience.
Although the rules on the length of initial contracts and subsequent contract extensions vary, as a rule, temporary agents in types (a), (b) and (d) may be hired by the Commission for a maximum period of six years and temporary agents who work in Commissioner's private offices are hired for a duration linked to the mandate of their Commissioner.
Temporary agents take part in the annual staff appraisal system that applies to permanent officials.
Your salary, benefits, and working conditions as a temporary agent are essentially the same as those of permanent officials. This covers the range of family allowances (including expatriation allowance), social security benefits such as medical insurance and pensions (pension rights are accumulated on the same basis as permanent officials), tax conditions, family-related leave, annual leave and working hours. Find out more in the section Permanent Officials.
As a temporary agent you may also be entitled to a temporary unemployment allowance, when your contract expires. For more information see Title 2 (Temporary Agents) in the Conditions of employment of other servants of the European Communities.
For more specific information please see the Staff Regulation of Officials of the European Communities link below;
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/docs/toc100_en.pdf
The Commission employs staff on a temporary basis, mainly for secretarial work, on short term contracts through temping agencies.
Start People Rue Montoyer, 40B-1000 BruxellesTel : 02/234.64.20Fax : 02/234.64.29
E-mail : eu@startpeople.be
Vedior Rue Montoyer, 41B-1000 BruxellesTel.
E-mail : ec@vedior.be
Unique Avenue des Arts, 57 AB-1000 BruxellesTel.
E-mail : ec@unique.be
Luxembourg ;
VEDIOR Interim 5 place de la Gare L-1616 Luxembourg Tel.
ADECCO 26 place de la GareL-1616 LuxembourgTel.
MANPOWER 44, route d'Esch L-1470 LuxembourgTel.
Specific questions on CAST25/27 as a contract agent;
I'm in the CAST 25 database; am I obliged to participate also in CAST 27?
If a candidate is already in the database of CAST 25, the validity of which continues to the end of the three years, he/she is not obliged to participate in the CAST 27 selection but may do so even in a different profile and function group; in this case, successful candidates will be listed under 2 different profiles.
What type of contract can I expect?
There are two sub-categories of contract agent;
The first covers those who are hired to work:- in Commission Directorates-General and all other Institutions to do manual or administrative support-service tasks (Function Group I) ; - in Commission Offices attached to a Directorate-General, such as the two Offices for Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels and Luxembourg and the Paymasters Office; - in Agencies; - in Commission Representations and Delegations. As a contract agent of this type (contract staff "3a") you would enjoy longer-term employment prospects, with an initial contract running for a maximum period of five years and renewable for a maximum of five years. The contract can be converted into a contract of indefinite duration.
The second sub-category covers contract agents that can be hired to work in Commission's DGs and other Institutions dealing with other tasks than manual and administrative support tasks (contract staff "3b"). That is to say, they are recruited:- temporarily to replace officials absent due to illness, maternity leave, etc.; - as a response to acute staff shortages at times of intense work pressure; - to undertake work for a temporary period providing additional capacity in specialised fields where officials with the required skills are not available. As a contract agent of this type, you would have short-term employment prospects, working on the basis of contracts running up to a maximum of three years. The minimum length of contract is three months.
Can a contractual position lead automatically to permanent employment?
No. Permanent recruitment is only possible via open competitions.
Is there a quota system for recruiting candidates of each Member State?
There is no national quota system for European civil servants, but the Institutions aim to recruit a broad geographical balance among the different Member States.
All contracts offered are managed directly by the Institutions, services or agencies concerned on a case- by-case basis and they are independent from the Office’s activities and principle mission.
Tips
Constantly check the EPSO website for all the latest calls for open competitions in order to get as organised as possible.
Preparatory courses
Member States - via their Permanent Representation office or other relevant organisation within their home country - sometimes organise courses aimed at training EU nationals for the European Institutions' open competitions. These courses are the sole responsibility of the Member State/accession country concerned and are entirely independent of the Selection Office.
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/docs/toc100_en.pdf
All information given is provided in the following external links;
http://europa.eu/epso/index_en.htm
http://ec.europa.eu/civil_service/job/temp/index_en.htm