We believe that private sector employers are the key to the development of Estonia and the welfare of its people. Realising this responsibility, we have intentionally taken an active role in improving life in Estonia. The Estonian Employers’ Confederation stands for a vital Estonia, being the voice of employers in Estonia and internationally.

Our mission is to contribute to Estonia’s economic growth and improve the standard of living of its people.

The Estonian Employers’ Confederation includes all the main industrial associations and many large businesses in Estonia. Directly and through industry associations, we represent more than 2000 companies employing in excess of 250 000 people. We are the only enterprise organization in Estonia recognized as a social partner, as we represent employers in the councils of the Estonian Health Insurance Fund, the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund and the Estonian Qualifications Authority and in negotiations on the national minimal wage. We support an economic environment in which social partners take as large a share as possible of the decisions affecting the labour market without the government’s intervention.

The Estonian Employers’ Confederation is a member of the International Organization of Employers (IOE), the Confederation of European Business (BusinessEurope) and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD (BIAC). We represent the interests of the Estonian enterprise environment in international organizations in the broadest sense. In our international activities we stand for an open and strong European Union with a competitive economy in the international context.

Prior contribution of the Estonian Employers’ Confederation to increasing digital competence

European Framework Agreement on Digitalisation. Implementation of the European Framework Agreement on Digitalisation – ESTONIA. The Estonian Employers’ Confederation and the Estonian Trade Union Confederation, as the social partners of the Republic of Estonia, have signed this framework agreement and agreed on the steps on how to proceed with the activities of the national digital framework agreement.

The project ‘DigiABC – digioskused tööstusesse!’ (‘DigiABC – Digital Skills for Industry’) is a project that was carried out between 2017 and 2021 through which digital skills reached thousands of people in the industrial sector. The project was commissioned by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and we carried out the project in cooperation with IT Koolitus. As part of the project, a training model and curriculum based on the international digital literacy framework DigiComp were established, 3,000 people working in the industrial sector were trained, the awareness of 1,000 industrial sector managers was increased in terms of the need for digital literacy at all professional levels, and the number of people of working age with missing or low digital literacy in Estonia was reduced. Read more on the website of the project. 2% Club. In March 2021, the President of the Republic of Estonia and the Estonian Employers’ Confederation signed an agreement on establishing a club for innovative companies. The employers’ initiative brings together companies that invest at least 2% of their turnover in R&D. In today’s world, digital literacy is one of the key pre-conditions for the success of innovation and R&D activities, one of the outputs of which is the digitisation of industries. Read more about the initiative on our website.

Action plan in English (agreement on digitalization)

Action plan in Estonian (agreement on digitalization)

Agreement on Digitalization in English

Agreement on Digitalization in Estonian

Raul Aron
Analyst-advisor of Estonian Employers` Confederation

Piia Zimmermann
Legal adviser of Estonian Employers` Confederation

Johanna Odes
Communication specialist and project coordinator of Estonian Employers` Confederation