A group of 13 business organisations and chambers of commerce put together 20 recommendations for politicians in Slovakia in mid-November (source: Sme)
The number of foreigners coming from countries outside the European Union who have obtained working permission in Slovakia exceeded 4,000 in 2016, one-third more than the year before.
Foreigners belong to one of the solutions companies use to tackle the problem with the lack of qualified workers, the Hospodárske Noviny daily reported.
One of the reasons why employers do not recruit more non-EU workers is difficult administration, according to Peter Dosedla of recruitment agency Express People. Business people have to prove to authorities that no Slovak worker is interested in the position intended to be given to a foreigner.
“The employer has to report a free position for at least 30 days to the labour office,” spokesperson for the Central Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR) explained to Hospodárske Noviny.
Only after this period expires, the employer can offer the job to third-country nationals, she added.
This however will change as of April as the parliament adopted milder rules for employing non-EU nationals in mid-March. This concerns mostly seasonal employees who will stay in Slovakia for more than 90 days, as well as employees who will arrive in the country as part of inter-corporate transfers, the Interior Ministry explained.
The companies addressed by Hospodárske Noviny claim that the amendment will not result in a mass search for workers in non-EU countries.
Currently, the most workers from countries outside the EU are from Ukraine and Serbia. Half of them have a university education, the daily reported.
