Taking advantage of the Federal Bureau meeting in Paris on May 12, USF met with the US-SOFAJ section, its members and interested non-members. Numerous topics were discussed: legal competence and jurisprudence, networking, presentation of USF, legal support…
Created by the Elysée Treaty in 1963, this international organization for Franco-German cooperation aims to encourage relations between young people from both countries, and to strengthen their understanding. The Franco-German Youth Office (OFAJ) was created by the Elysée Treaty in 1963, with the aim of encouraging exchanges between young people from the two countries, reinforcing their understanding and, in so doing, changing perceptions of their neighboring country, and contributing to education for European citizenship.
To this end, the OFAJ supports school and university exchanges, language courses, town and regional twinning, sports and cultural events, internships and professional exchanges, travel grants, leadership training, research projects, etc.
The OFAJ, an international public-law organization, is managed by a Board of Directors, chaired by the Ministers responsible for youth affairs in both countries, and headed by a Franco-German tandem of General Secretaries. The 70 OFAJ staff work in binational teams at three sites: Paris, the current headquarters, Berlin, and an office in Saarbrücken. Working conditions and relations are governed by the OFAJ’s own staff regulations.
For more information on their activities, click here: https://www.ofaj.org/
USF also met the Director of the OFAJ in an atmosphere of attentiveness and openness. It was an opportunity for Union Syndicale (USF) to present its demands to US-OFAJ, notably on change management and union involvement in management, skills and the specific role between the Staff Committee and union work. This was an opportunity for USF to formulate its request for recognition of US-OFAJ, which was heard with attention and interest.
