Working Group on Skills

Bringing together experts and initiatives working on advancing skills development for the European semiconductor industry.

Silicon chips and relevant technologies have become an integral part of our lives. They are vital for kickstarting the new technological boom and sustaining the green and digital transition. However, chips are insufficient on their own. A dramatic increase in the domestic production of semiconductors requires a dramatic increase in the number of workers producing them. Boosted by the EU Chips Act and the relevant investment plans, the European workforce in the semiconductor sector is expected to rise from around 300k in 2022 to more than 500k in 2030. Over 200k new workers will need to be employed in the industry, meaning some workers will need to be re-skilled, others redeployed, and the number of graduates increased.

Objectives

Addressing the skills gap, educate, develop, attract, up- and re-skill, and retain workers in the semiconductor sector is a major challenge that calls on all the involved stakeholders which include industry, academia, vocational providers, national and regional governments, labor unions, industrial associations, education service providers.   The Working Group (WG) of the Alliance shall support this activity with a joint commitment of all the WG’s participants as a follow up to a Blueprint on semiconductors skills published in June 2024.

Deliverables

The WG is expected to deliver a practical plan with tangible actions deemed crucial to bridge the talent gap, including prospective beneficiaries of the actions and the relevant actors, means and a workable timeline.

The Alliance WG shall build on the activity of the working group on skills led by the ALLPROS.eu DEP CSA coordinated support action project which has been already engaging for months in gathering public and private stakeholders in the semiconductor sector with a focus on skills. The outcome of this preparatory work is the publication of a Blueprint on skills that has been prepared by the ALLPROS consortium.   The WG will be expected to advance on the implementation of this Blueprint and ensure a coordination of the multiple efforts existing and upcoming on semiconductors skills.

The WG on Skills is a members only group and therefore the access is limited to the members of the Alliance on Processors and Semiconductor Technologies.