Romanian tourism industry faces post-pandemic 50.000 staff shortages

“The private sector has repeatedly flagged up the workforce deficit it is facing, an issue which has worsened during the pandemic when, for instance, numerous touristic establishments have had to scale back their operations and their employees have had to move to different fields of work,” commented tourism minister Constantin-Daniel Cadariu.

The biggest staff shortages, estimated at around 20.000 vacancies, are the ones covering the sea-side tourism sector, and with the coming of the summer season, the problems needs to be urgently tackled.

According to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INS), during 2019, the tourism industry accounted for 3% of the country’s GDP, while hiring 480.705 employees.

In order to find a solution, the tourism ministry currently considers boosting immigration rates. This translates into granting working visas for non-EU workers. According to the Migration Policy Institute, Romania is a preferred destination for migrants from Turkey, China, Israel, and Iraq.

More measures related to the tackling of the country’s tourism staff shortages are yet to be announced.

Romania has 19.5 million inhabitants, from which about 9 million are estimated to represent the total workforce, while employment in the country currently stands at 62.1% according to the INS data.

 

Source: seenews.com