In partnership with the CCCA-BTP, Euro App Mobility organized, this Wednesday, December 17, the sixth meeting of the Employers’ Club for a European Apprenticeship Area at the CFA BTP Marne in Reims. This meeting, with major stakeholders in the construction and public works sector, aimed to raise employers’ awareness of integrating international mobility periods into apprenticeship programs.
This meeting gathered nearly one hundred participants: stakeholders from the building and public works sector, institutional stakeholders, and company representatives, as well as several dozen apprentices trained by the CFA BTP Marne and CNAM Grand-Est.
Grand Est BTP Companies Mobilized for the International Mobility of Apprentices
The Employers’ Club, created in 2024 by EAM and its partners with the support of Medef, U2P, and CPME, aims to convince companies of the benefits of mobility, both for themselves and for their apprentices. The Club is structured at the regional level into entities led by a spokesperson from the business world. Nationally, it forms a network of committed stakeholders, coordinated by Jean-Christophe Sciberras, coordinator of Global Deal France.
These local clubs, supported by EAM network CFAs, are spaces for dialogue between companies and stakeholders in work-study training. This sixth meeting, organized yesterday in Reims, extends the network to the Grand Est territory, with a specific focus on the building and public works sector.
A Commitment Supported by National Economic Partners
This initiative is supported by major partners such as Medef, CPME, U2P, and a large majority of OPCOs.
Appointed spokesperson for the Grand Est, Riccardo Agnesina, who is both president of CFA BTP Marne and CPME de la Marne, opened the meeting by reminding that apprentice mobility represents both an issue of equal opportunities and a competitive asset for companies.
An Investment for the Future
Initially, several regional stakeholders spoke to express their support for apprentice mobility.
Indeed, mobility is also a lever for attractiveness for apprenticeship training programs. To quote the sub-prefect of Reims, Benoît Lemaire:
“Today, apprenticeship is a path to excellence.”
For Dimitri Oudin, Deputy Mayor of Reims, “the promotion of apprenticeship through mobility is essential to address recruitment challenges.”
He invited Reims-based companies to commit to this cause, reminding that “for companies, sending an apprentice is not a risk but an investment.”
Mr. Oudin also emphasized mobility as an important asset for the region:
“It is this type of project that allows us to invest in our region in the long term. It enables the region to gain in attractiveness and competitiveness.”
An Initiative Undertaken by Several Stakeholders
For his part, Jacques Olivier Henon, Director of Training Policies and Pedagogical Innovation at CCCA-BTP, shared the commitments made by his organization:
“We have increased from 700 mobilities within the network in 2024 to 3000 in 2025,” he announced. “Our goal is to reach 5000 in 2026.”
The CCCA-BTP and OPCO Constructys, a skills operator for the construction and building sector, are responsible for financing mobilities, as well as supporting projects.
Mr. Henon reminds that “the development of international mobility requires a dynamic of partnership activation to ensure the quality of exchanges.”
Apprentice Mobility: A Strategic Issue for Companies
In the second part of the meeting, the facilitator of the Employers’ Club, Jean-Christophe Sciberras, led a discussion with representative employer organizations: CPME, the French Building Federation, the Regional Public Works Federation, and the Chamber of Trades and Crafts. He opened this segment by sharing his experience. Having observed it himself as a Group HR Director, he indicated that “mobility helps retain apprentices. If the company offers growth opportunities to the young people it trains, they express their gratitude by tending to stay after their training.”
Louis-Xavier Forest, Secretary General of the French Building Federation, gave a concrete example of the benefits of mobility:
“If an apprentice works in a different context, they gain adaptability skills, particularly in understanding the various regulations in force in construction. Upon returning, they challenge our techniques, and thus, it is thanks to their apprenticeship that our companies will change and make our techniques more efficient.”
CFA BTP Marne: The Success of Integrating Mobilities into Curricula
To illustrate the successes of mobilities, several apprentices also shared their international mobility experiences. CFA BTP Marne is a pioneer in integrating mobilities into training curricula – the engineering degree, for example, includes a mandatory mobility period of at least 9 weeks. Andrea Bigazzi, an invited expert from Italy for the occasion, presented the partnership between CFA BTP Marne and the Centre per la Formazione e Sicurezza in Edilizia, in Arezzo, Italy.
The Club meeting concluded with a visit to the new international office of CFA BTP Marne. For a large number of coordinators, their responsibilities related to mobility represent only a fraction of their duties. Housing the international relations department and mobility coordinators, this space will be entirely dedicated to mobility. To facilitate their research and future departures, students will be able to find the necessary resources there.
General Context of the Association
Euro App Mobility, created in 2020 by former minister Jean Arthuis, aims to support institutions, private actors, and work-study training stakeholders in implementing long-term mobilities for apprentices. Its Employers’ Club for a European Apprenticeship Area aims to convince companies of the benefits of mobility. The ultimate goal is to promote the integration of international mobility periods into the sector’s apprenticeship programs.
This initiative also falls within a broader dynamic encouraged by the European Union. Together, we advocate for the idea that international mobility constitutes a lever for European competitiveness and attractiveness towards professions facing shortages.
