Programme Manager

MAKE A DIFFERENCE - JOIN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION Do you want to help shape the future of the European Union? Make the planet greener, promote a fairer society, or support businesses and innovation across the EU? Then come and work for the European Commission where you can really make a difference! Commission staff are a diverse group of people, who are motivated to help make Europe – and the world – a better place. They come from the 27 Member States of the European Union. Different nationalities, backgrounds, languages and cultures make the Commission a vibrant and inclusive place to work.

WE OFFER GREAT JOBS AND GREAT WORKING CONDITIONS:

• Interesting and challenging positions with plenty of opportunities for training and acquiring new skills and competencies throughout your whole career
• Opportunities to move between different policy areas throughout your career
• A package of flexible working conditions including the possibility of teleworking – we care about your work-life balance
• A competitive financial package, including comprehensive healthcare, accident and pension schemes
• A multilingual, multicultural workplace where personal and career development are strongly promoted
• Multilingual schools for your children

We recruit from a wide range of backgrounds and actively promote diversity and inclusion: We do not only recruit political scientists and lawyers but are also looking for all kinds of profiles, including scientists, linguists, IT experts, data analysts and economists, as well as drivers and engineers.

We are committed to equal opportunities and to fostering a rich, diverse and inclusive working environment. We aim for our workforce to be representative of European society and strongly welcome applications from all qualified candidates. We actively seek to create a workplace where each staff member feels valued and respected, can give their best and can develop to their full potential.

To promote diversity and establish a geographically balanced pool of candidates, we strongly encourage applicants from Member States which are currently underrepresented in the European Commission workforce to apply. These Member States are currently Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden. Recruitment will however remain strictly based on the merits of all applicants and no positions will be reserved for nationals of any specific Member State.

STAFF RECRUITED ON CONTRACTS In addition to permanent officials, the European Commission offers non-permanent positions. There are two categories of non-permanent staff:

• temporary agents are recruited to fill vacant positions for a set amount of time or to perform highly specialised tasks.
• contract agents may provide additional capacity in specialised fields where an insufficient number of officials is available or carry out a number of administrative or manual tasks. They are generally recruited for fixed-term contracts (maximum 6 years in any EU Institution), but in some cases they can be offered contracts for an indefinite duration (in offices, agencies, delegations or representations).

For more information on different staff categories

Programme Manager – ESF+ and European Semester - Greece Directorate - General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion European Commission Job title: Programme Manager - EU Policies – Greece Domain: EMPLOYMENT (EU/national/regional level) Where : Unit EMPL.F.5 – Cyprus, Greece / Brussels Function Group: FG IV Contract Type : 3b Express your interest until : 09.10.2026 - 12.00 (noon, Brussels time ) WE ARE The Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (DG EMPL) pursues policy, legislative and financial initiatives designed to build a highly competitive social market economy in the European Union. The European Pillar of Social Rights is the EU social strategy to ensure that the transitions to climate neutrality, digitalisation and demographic change are socially fair and just. Its aim is to create more and better jobs, promote skills and vocational education and training, improve the functioning of the labour markets, fight inequalities, confront poverty and social exclusion, modernise social protection systems, facilitate the free movement of workers, promote workers’ rights, health and safety at work, and protect against discrimination in the workplace.

The mission of Directorate EMPL.F is to contribute to sustainable and inclusive economic growth, employment and social outcomes in the EU. It coordinates the European Semester activities of the DG and represents the Commission in the Employment Committee and its sub -groups. It analyses employment and social trends and formulates policy advice, including on the fair green and digital transitions, and to the implementation of the EU research & innovation programme. It is also responsible for the implementation and monitoring of EU funds supporting employment, skills and social activities in Greece and Cyprus and contributes to their reform agenda under the European Semester.

The mission of Unit F5 is to contribute to attaining the objectives of the European Pillar of Social Rights in Greece and Cyprus, promoting efficient and inclusive labour markets and social protection systems, and supporting skills development and accessible social services and healthcare for all. To this effect, Unit F5 is the source of country intelligence for DG Employment in the context of the European Semester and fund management. The unit ensures, in close cooperation with the national and regional authorities and stakeholders, the efficient and effective programming and implementation of the European Social Fund Plus and the Social Climate Fund. It coordinates these funds with other European funding streams, notably the European Regional Development Fund, the Just Transition Fund and the Recovery and Resilience Facility, which it contributes to assess and monitor.

WE PROPOSE The successful candidate will contribute to the management of the Social Climate Fund for Greece , and to the analysis of employment and social developments in Greece in the context of the European Semester . In addition, according to their experience and background, s/he will be in charge and provide policy steering for one or more horizontal areas of expertise in the fields of employment and social inclusion. S/he will contribute to the unit’s analysis and monitoring of policy and political developments in these areas in Greece, and of the European Pillar of Social Rights. The jobholder will have regular contacts with the national authorities and other stakeholders, prepare regular monitoring meetings and travel on missions. WE LOOK FOR We are looking for a highly motivated person, results -oriented, proactive colleague with solid analytical skills and understanding on employment and/or social inclusion and/or skills, education & vocational education and training (VET) policies as well as good exposure to management of EU Funds. Experience and knowledge about Social Climate Fund is an asset. The new colleague is expected to have a good sense of initiative and responsibility, be a good team player, quickly identify key priorities, have excellent drafting skills and deliver quality outputs. Very good organisational and communication skills are essential. The person for this position should have an education background and/or professional experience of at least 1 year in employment, education and social affairs, structural funds and/or economic affairs. As regards languages, fluency in English and/or French is a big advantage , and a good capacity to work and draft in Greek is a clear asset .

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

With a view to guaranteeing equal access to all, the Commission recruits from an open database of spontaneous applications. The present call for interests aims at helping the recruiters to identify potentially interested candidates within this database.

In practice, to express your interest, please follow the subsequent two steps:

1. If you are not registered yet in the open EPSO database, please do so at the following address: CAST

Permanent. Please select under selection procedures for contract agent the CAST permanent profile that best suits your education and experience.

2. You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:
3. your CV 2. completed application form.

Please send these documents by the publication deadline to sign up to see this e-mail indicating the call for interest reference EC - 2026 - EMPL - 367388 in the subject. No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline.

ANNEX

1. Selection

➢ Am I eligible to apply?

You must meet the following eligibility criteria when you validate your application : Our rules provide that you can only be recruited as a contract agent at the European Commission if you: General criteria:

• Are a citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen ;
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service;
• Are physically fit to perform the duties linked to the pos ition;
• Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties.
• Have passed a n EPSO CAST in the relevant Function Group for this pos ition. At the stage of the application, it is sufficient to be registered in the EPSO CAST data base.

Qualifications: (a) Have a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least three years attested by a diploma .

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the Ministry of Education) will be accepted.

Languages:

• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1) of one of the 24 official languages of the

EU2

• AND have a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2)3 of a second official language of the EU, to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties.

➢ What about the selection steps?

The selecting unit chooses from the EPSO database 4 candidates with the appropriate profile and invites them to an interview. For the interview a selection panel is set -up to assess the best

candidates. Due to the large volume of applications that we may receive only candidates selected for the interview will be notified.

For operational reasons and in order to complete the selection procedure as quickly as possible in the interest of the candidates and of the institution, the selection procedure will be carried out in English and possibly in a second official language.

2. Recruitment

The candidate selected for recruitment will be requested to provide documentary evidence in support of the statements made in the database and, where relevant, the call for interest. The successful candidate will be required to undergo a mandatory pre -recruitment medical check- up carried out by the Commission. ➢ Type of contract and working conditions The place of employment will be in Brussels .

The successful candidate will be engaged as a contract agent under Article 3(b) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants , in function group FG IV . General information on Contract Agents can be found at this link.

The grade or proposed grade range, as well as the step in that grade , will be defined on the basis of the candidates’ previous professional experience, in accordance with Commission Decision C(201 7)6760 laying down the criteria applicable to classification in step on engagement . Please note that this post is financed under the REAC -EU and limited in time. The end date of the post is expected to be 31 December 2027 (initial contract and possible renewal(s) where appropriate), subject to budget availability.

Contract agents recruited in Function Group I V have to successfully complete a 9-month probationary period.

The pay of staff members consists of a basic salary supplemented with specific allowances, including, where applicable, expatriation and family allowances. The provisions guiding the calculation of these allowances can be consulted in the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants. As a member of staff of the European institutions, your pay is subject to a tax raised by those institutions.

The European Commission applies a policy of equal opportunities and non -discrimination in accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations.

Should you need further information on working conditions, please refer to Working conditions and benefits of EU Careers .

For information related to Data Protection, please see the Specific Privacy Statement under “7. Information to data subjects on their rights”, to find your rights and how to exercise them in addition to the privacy statement, which summarises the processing of your data.