[Czechia] Government looks to foreign workers to fill 200k vacancies

Czechia’s Labour Minister has announced that companies in the country currently have a shortage of around 200,000 workers and need to recruit foreigners to fill the gap, Expats.cz reports. 

Labor Minister Marian Jurečka made the announcement on July 18 during a meeting of the Government Committee for Strategic Investments. Mr Jurečka stated that the lack of labour forces in Czechia limits the growth of the Czech GDP and that filling the 200,000 vacancies would bring an additional CZK 40 billion to the budget.

Prime Minister Petr Fiala said, “The Czech economy will run out of steam if we don’t do anything.” 

The PM reportedly said that previous governments had neglected Czechia's development in a number of areas and, without quick action, there would be a risk that the nation’s competitiveness would decrease. 

To bolster infrastructure, the Prime Minister reiterated the need to hire more foreign workers. Doing so would enhance Czechia's economy, he said, which would in turn make Czechia a more attractive work destination. 

Mr Jurečka said that sourcing workers from other European countries, workers from Vietnam and the Phillippines would also be an asset for Czechia.

“We need to efficiently, safely, and quickly recruit people from countries that are close to us in terms of culture and values”, he said.

The Czech unemployment rate currently stands at around 3.4 per cent. In recent years Czechia has had the lowest unemployment rate in the whole EU. Almost one million foreigners worked in the Czech Republic at the end of December 2022, according to official data, and they reportedly comprised approximately 15 per cent of the country’s adult workforce.

Source: Expats.cz

(Link and quotes via original reporting)

Czechia’s Labour Minister has announced that companies in the country currently have a shortage of around 200,000 workers and need to recruit foreigners to fill the gap, Expats.cz reports. 

Labor Minister Marian Jurečka made the announcement on July 18 during a meeting of the Government Committee for Strategic Investments. Mr Jurečka stated that the lack of labour forces in Czechia limits the growth of the Czech GDP and that filling the 200,000 vacancies would bring an additional CZK 40 billion to the budget.

Prime Minister Petr Fiala said, “The Czech economy will run out of steam if we don’t do anything.” 

The PM reportedly said that previous governments had neglected Czechia's development in a number of areas and, without quick action, there would be a risk that the nation’s competitiveness would decrease. 

To bolster infrastructure, the Prime Minister reiterated the need to hire more foreign workers. Doing so would enhance Czechia's economy, he said, which would in turn make Czechia a more attractive work destination. 

Mr Jurečka said that sourcing workers from other European countries, workers from Vietnam and the Phillippines would also be an asset for Czechia.

“We need to efficiently, safely, and quickly recruit people from countries that are close to us in terms of culture and values”, he said.

The Czech unemployment rate currently stands at around 3.4 per cent. In recent years Czechia has had the lowest unemployment rate in the whole EU. Almost one million foreigners worked in the Czech Republic at the end of December 2022, according to official data, and they reportedly comprised approximately 15 per cent of the country’s adult workforce.

Source: Expats.cz

(Link and quotes via original reporting)