Norway signs European Charter for Researchers

Brussels, October 2006

The Research Council of Norway has signed the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. Norway becomes the 14th country to sign the charter and code.

'The objective is to ensure good working conditions for researchers across Europe and thereby make researcher careers more attractive and facilitate mobility between European countries,' said Arvid Hallén, the Director General of the Research Council of Norway. 'Norway already practises most of the recommendations of the charter and code of conduct, and by signing we support the process and encourage other countries to follow,' he said.

Published by the European Commission in March 2005, the Charter and Code of Conduct are considered to be key initiatives in the EU's policy to help increase the number of researchers in Europe, and to stimulate economic and employment growth. While the Charter addresses the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers and their employers or funding organisations, the Code seeks to improve recruitment, to make selection procedures fairer and more transparent, and proposes different means of judging merit.