Andalusia allocates 700,000 euros to training for workers affected by silicosis

The General Directorate of Vocational Training in the Labor Sector of the Regional Ministry of Employment, Enterprise and Self-Employment has announced 700,000 euros in grants to finance professional training via tele-training aimed at unemployed and employed workers affected by silicosis in Andalusia. The call is published in the Official Gazette of the Regional Government of Andalusia (BOJA) no. 207, dated October 26, 2026, through the Resolution of October 21, 2026 (text no. 13981) and its summary (text no. 13983), with a deadline of only ten calendar days to submit applications.

The call is based on the regulatory bases approved by the Order of November 3, 2023 (BOJA no. 214, of November 8, 2023), corrected by the text published in BOJA no. 11, of January 16, 2024, and on the organic structure established by Decree 195/2026, of July 30. The authority to issue the call is delegated to the head of the general directorate through the first additional provision of the aforementioned order.

The administrative file contains the background of the measure: the Parliament of Andalusia approved a Non-Legislative Proposal on June 14, 2023, urging the Andalusian Government to implement training programs for workers with silicosis, and the Regional Ministry has participated in the Permanent Working Group on Silicosis since July 2024. The project to detect the training needs of this group concluded in September 2025.

The health scope justifying the aid

The official text describes silicosis as an occupational lung disease that causes irreversible fibrosis and which, since 2007, has seen an increase linked to the handling of quartz agglomerates. In Andalusia, more than 600 official occupational disease reports for silicosis were filed between 2007 and 2023, with an average age of approximately 36 years and accelerated forms in more than 26 percent of the cases.

According to the Occupational Disease Laboratory-Observatory of Andalusia, silicosis represents approximately 15 percent of the occupational diseases registered in the region between 2018 and 2023, with incidence in mining, construction, stone material manufacturing, and the ceramics industry.

Two grant lines and distribution by annual installments

The funding comes entirely from General State Administration funds and is divided into two annual installments:

• Line 1 (unemployed persons): 500,000 euros, with 350,000 euros in 2026 and 150,000 euros in 2027, charged to items 1400180000G/32D/47009/00 and 1400180000G/32D/48009/00, funding code S0044.
• Line 2 (employed persons): 200,000 euros, with 140,000 euros in 2026 and 60,000 euros in 2027, using the same items and code S0534.
• Total: 490,000 euros in 2026 and 210,000 euros in 2027, totaling 700,000 euros.

The grant covers up to 100 percent of the cost of the training activity and is calculated by multiplying training hours by the number of students and by the economic module of each specialty, with a maximum of 80 students per specialty. The call identifiers in the National Grants Database are BDNS 936465 and 936469.

Requirements for entities and recipients

Private training entities, both for-profit and non-profit, that have a learning platform registered in the corresponding registry, may be beneficiaries; public entities are excluded. Each entity shall submit a single application per line for all of Andalusia, through the PROFEUS+A platform.

Students must fall under one of these scenarios:

• Having a recognized total permanent disability associated with silicosis.
• Having the disease diagnosed without recognized disability or with the process ongoing.
• Being registered with the Andalusian Employment Service as a job seeker or for pre-employment services, in the case of Line 1.
• Being an employee with a workplace in Andalusia, in the case of Line 2.

Ten-day deadline and urgent processing

The deadline for submitting applications is ten calendar days from the day following the publication of the summary, ending at 12:00 PM on the final day. Late applications or those that do not adhere to the form will be inadmissible without the possibility of correction.

The procedure is processed as urgent, with ordinary deadlines reduced by half, except for those regarding applications and appeals. The maximum period to resolve and publish the resolution is two months from the end of the application period; the instruction corresponds to the Head of the Employment Programs Service and the resolution to the general directorate. Training actions will be executed within a maximum of twelve months from the day following the publication of the award, and the justification must be submitted within two months.

Payment is an advance of 70 percent, without prior justification, under the Agreement of June 24, 2026, of the Governing Council; the remaining 30 percent is settled after reviewing the justification. The evaluation of applications is based on a maximum of 40 points: up to 20 for staff trainers on payroll, 5 for the balance of said staff, 5 for training in gender and equality, and 10 for quality systems.

The resolution bears the signature of the general director of Vocational Training, María Eva Melero Torres, and its effectiveness begins the day following the publication of the summary.

The call for applications comes at a time when silicosis has ceased to be a residual pathology: it affects increasingly younger workers who are forced to abandon their trade due to preventive prescriptions and lack the training to pivot. The 700,000 euros fund this retraining, but the timeline is demanding: interested entities have barely ten calendar days to apply.

Source: Official Gazette of the Regional Government of Andalusia, no. 207, of October 26, 2026, section 1. General provisions, pages 13981 and 13983 (official reference: text no. 13981 and text no. 13983; BDNS 936465 and 936469).