Article révisé par les pairs
| Résumé : | This paper aims to further understanding on the operating modes of the Fonds de l'expérience professionnelle (occupational experience fund, FEP). The FEP is a Belgian public scheme that funds initiatives led at companies to improve the working conditions of private-sector employees aged 45 and over. According to a typology specific to the public administration, the subsidies granted concern both the identification of workers' needs and the working conditions to be improved, as well as ergonomic adjustments of work stations, changes in job position, improvements in the organisation of work, and the upskilling of employees. Based on an analysis of FEP projects initiated in 2010, the aim is to understand how organisational approaches are implemented at companies concerned by the public scheme at two levels of understanding. The first such level addresses the content of the projects in itself. The second sheds light on the reasons underpinning the choices made by the project creators according to the situation of the company. Does the existence of organisational factors determine the implementation of projects? And does gender play a role? The findings show the degree to which the physical arduousness of work constitutes the dominant factor informing the action plans of companies and how, despite the diversity of practices, the issue of gender is scarcely addressed, except through a sector-based focus. |
