Effective integration of legal migrants and refugees will benefit Europe's labour markets, plagued by skills and labour shortages. If tackled properly, the migration challenge could be turned into a real opportunity not only for our economies but also for our society as a whole, participants in the European Migration Forum (EMF) concluded last week.

On 7 and 8 February, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) held a "policy learning forum" to explore ways of creating new learning and training opportunities for low-skilled adults, who account for 25% of Europe's workforce and total more than 64 million people.

New incentives aim to foster a fairer division of childcare and other caring duties between men and women, which should help reduce the persistent gender employment gap

Measures proposed by the European Commission to help families achieve a better work-life balance and tackle the unequal distribution of care responsibilities between men and women represent a step in the right direction, said the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) at its plenary session in December.