Business

Tomislav Debeljak ''Importing'' 200 Indian Workers to Croatia's Brodosplit

By 9 August 2019

The demographic crisis in Croatia is continuing to bite, and while chronic staff shortages remain the main plague of Croatian employers, many companies across the country are now turning to the ''import'' of third country nationals, such as Indians.

We have written quite extensively on the Croatian demographic crisis, the staff shortages and the repeated increase in the quota for foreign (non EU) labour by the Croatian Government. While this has mitigated problems to a degree this year, it isn't clear what the strategy will need to be next year. After all, it isn't just tourism workers that Croatia is lacking during the season, it is qualified labour from all sectors who are making their way abroad.

The Croatian love of red tape and paperwork is also throwing a spanner in the works despite the government's quota increase for foreign workers, as many Croatian employers who give jobs to those from outside the EU, even from as close by as neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, are waiting for an average of two months for their residence and work permits to be approved, and by that time - they're no longer required. Without the necessary papers given the green light by MUP, these third country nationals cannot be paid a wage.

You can read more on this secondary plight on Croatia's employers here.

As previously mentioned, it isn't just tourism workers who are desperately needed in Croatia, but skilled staff from all fields. Tomislav Debeljak of the shipbuilding giant Brodosplit, has found a way to make ends meet as far as staffing is concerned.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of August, 2019, more than 2000 workers are currently employed at Brodosplit. The first group of workers from India will start working in Brodosplit in early September, Slobodna Dalmacija has learned. It is estimated that there will be about two hundred Indian workers at Brodosplit by the end of this year.

According to the currently available information, Brodosplit's Indian employees will have a monthly salary of around 950 euros.

Otherwise, workers in Brodosplit can earn up to 1,500 euros net per month, while subcontractors, which is the status the company's Indian workers will have, are paid around 12 to 16 euros per hour.

As stated, Brodosplit currently employs more than 2000 workers, and many of them are workers from all over the world working in cooperative companies, depending on the current needs for certain professions, so that the contracted jobs will be completed as well as possible. The addition of 200 Indian workers will surely make things easier on the company.

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