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Published on: 11/03/2020Updated on: 11/03/2020
What is a Family Assistant?
"Being a family assistant means caring for someone's home and household tasks. It's also doing laundry and ironing, shopping, and sometimes even preparing meals," explains Dulce, who has been flourishing in this occupation for 22 years in France. A family assistant may also care for children or support elderly people who have lost autonomy. Beyond maintaining the living environment, versatility is now one of the key skills of the "domestic housekeeper" occupation in Europe.
An Occupation in the Shadows Lacking Recognition
There are over 2.6 million declared family assistants in Europe (with a strong presence in Spain, France, and Italy), but this profile remains invisible. Several reasons for this:
- High level of undeclared employment: 30% in France and up to 70% in Spain and Italy
- 80% women, reflecting the domestic work sector
- 30% migrants
- Limited recognition of social utility compared to other professionals whose primary mission is supporting people
- Little or no training due to a lack of existing offerings or sufficient information
It's time to overcome these prejudices and bring family assistants and their skills out of the shadows—or, better yet, enhance them. Indeed, the challenges of an aging population and massive female participation in the European labor market require this. According to EU estimates, between 18 and 20 million jobs will be needed in coming years to support these demographic and social changes.
PRODOME, a European Project with Meaning and Ambition
Co-funded by the Erasmus+ program, the PRODOME project -- PROfessionalising DOMestic housekeepers in Europe -- which means "Professionalizing Family Assistants in Europe," aligns with the European strategy for skills development. Based on occupations and qualifications, professionalization serves the emergence of the domestic work sector in Europe to offer (future) employees a professional dynamic for acquiring skills, recognition, and security in their career path.
Over the past three years, PRODOME has mobilized 12 partners from three countries (France, Spain, and Italy)—social partners, training organizations, and institutions—to create and make available to EU member states training adapted to the current needs of the family assistant profile.Understand the context and challenges through the project infographic
An Online Training Kit, Accessible Throughout the EU
The PRODOME project ended in late 2019. However, the resulting training "continues to live." Compliant with the European Qualifications Framework, it aims to enable the maximum number of family assistants in Europe to acquire the skills required for the occupation: traditional skills (primarily technical), specific interpersonal skills, and transversal skills (mainly digital and green).
It covers all current family assistant activities through nine 300-hour modules (180 hours of blended learning and 120 hours of practical training or internship). EU member states are invited to implement it in their territories via a free online training kit accessible in four languages (English, French, Italian, and Spanish).
This training constitutes the first step in recognizing and professionalizing the European family assistant occupation. The following steps remain. Can we take them together?
