The new employee at the Mayor's office will only be assigned to make and serve coffee
Whether you live in Croatia or have only visited at a certain point, no matter if you spent an entire summer on the Adriatic coast or have just passed through the country on your way to another destination… You must have noticed a phenomenon indigenous to the Balkans, one that especially shines through on Croatian streets and squares: our coffee culture.
Us Croats love coffee so much, most of our social interactions take place at cafés, centred around a cup of this divine beverage. This is how we catch up with friends, debate on current affairs, discuss anything from politics to pop culture, make business deals, score new jobs. Owing to that, going for coffee never implies just a quick meet-up: we’re able to spend multiple hours nestled in comfy chairs at our favourite bars and cafés, slowly sipping on a single cup of our caffeine fix.
Coffee is held in such a high regard in these parts, its prestigious reputation managed to seep into public office. In case you ever wanted to earn your living by making coffee, but you’re aiming for a classier position than that of an average waiter or barista, here’s your chance: the City of Dubrovnik recently launched a public tender for the position of… a coffee-maker.
Nope, not a joke – the City of Dubrovnik published a listing at the Croatian Employment Service, looking for a person whose main duty would be “preparing and serving coffee and other beverages to the officials and guests of the Mayor’s office”, reports Slobodna Dalmacija on November 14, 2017.
The candidate needs to be at least 18 years of age, a Croatian citizen, and have vocational qualification in the fields of tourism or hospitality, along with a minimum of 1 year of relevant work experience. All candidates who meet the listed criteria will have to pass a written general knowledge exam as well. The lucky candidate who ends up securing the position will earn a gross salary of 5587 kuna after a three-month probation period.
Slobodna Dalmacija was quick to carry out a survey, asking their readers to state their opinion on whether the City needs its own coffee-making official. Proposed answers: 1) No, let them make their own coffee, 2) Only in case they don’t own a coffee machine, 3) Yes, the Mayor and his deputy have more important things to attend to. You can take a wild guess which particular answer most citizens opted for.
The entire staff at the Mayor’s office really must be swamped with work, as coffee-making is usually considered a duty of interns, assistants or any other low-ranking employees in public offices. When a particular institution calls for their very own coffee-maker, you can be certain all other employees can’t spare a minute of their working hours to brew a fresh pot of everyone’s favourite elixir. Or, y’know, the City of Dubrovnik might just have it well enough, they can afford certain luxuries most of us can only dream about. It really would be nice to get served a cup of coffee at a moment’s notice, wouldn’t it?
