Science Europe Response to the Call for Evidence on the Fair Labour Mobility Package

Science Europe has responded to the European Commission Call-for-Evidence on a Fair Labour Mobility Package, launched in January 2026 by the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. Career and mobility opportunities for research professionals across the European Research Area is a cornerstone of the effectiveness, attractiveness, and quality of our research systems. It is vital that all research professionals are provided with opportunities for mobility in an equitable and inclusive manner as a means of gaining expertise, experience, and new skills. This is a long-standing position of Science Europe, and is reflected in our past and ongoing actions related to careers in- and conditions for- research, including the 2022 Science Europe Position Statement on Strengthening R&I systems across Europe, and the 2024 Careers in Research Workshop.

In response to this Call for Evidence, Science Europe emphasises the need to align proposed fair labour mobility interventions with research career-related aspects of the ERA Act and the Skills Portability Initiative. It is also essential that coherence is established with developments in other major research policy movements such as the reform of research assessment and open science, both of which directly influence the mobility and career pathway opportunities of research professionals. In this response, Science Europe underlines the importance of:

1. Access to social security provisions.

2.Diversification of career pathways and mobility opportunities.

3. Academic freedom, working conditions conducive to good research practice, and the right to free movement.