May 8, 2023 - The situation in the Croatian job market seems to be quite dynamic. Croats are changing jobs more than ever before, and they intend to continue the practice of quitting. This was confirmed by research conducted last year by the Department of Work Psychology of the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb in cooperation with Hendal and a separate survey by the MojPosao portal.

As Poslovni writes, according to research by the Department of Work Psychology, a fifth of Croats were looking for a new job at the time of the survey, and a quarter (27%) intended to do so in the next year.

Research results by the MojPosao portal were a lot more drastic and show that in the last three years, almost half (45%) of employees have quit their jobs, and nearly every other employee plans to do so within a year.

Salary as the main reason for quitting

Zvonimir Galić, a professor from the Department of Work Psychology at the Faculty of Philosophy, explains that due to the research methodology, the figures of the MojPosao portal are probably overestimated, but they confirm a dynamic trend that has never existed in the domestic labour market. And the answer to why people change jobs is actually very simple. "Because they can," says Galić.

"For the first time, we have a situation of a huge lack of workers in all segments, and employers have to fight for them. At the same time, our salaries are generally low and have further decreased due to inflation, so people are looking for work where they can get a better salary," explains the professor.

It is precisely this - salary - that is the number one reason why people will decide to change jobs. But it is not the only one. Research by the MojPosao portal thus shows that poor working conditions are high on the list of reasons people would start looking for a new job.

After salary (49%), workers also mention bad interpersonal relations (45%), lack of professional advancement opportunities (42%), undervaluation by the employer (42%) and poor working conditions that affect health (41%). It turns out that despite the chronic lack of workers, domestic employers still do not understand the value of workers.

Investing in people

"Management of human resources has progressed a lot in recent years, but it is still weak. Many employers still do not understand that they must deal with people better. It is as if they remain blind to what is happening in the labour market. First, therefore, they must raise wages. But that will not be enough. People want a working environment in which they can grow and progress", says the Department of Work Psychology professor. Also, Galić believes that the trend of resigning or changing jobs will continue for two reasons.

"Demographic trends are such that more people are retiring than entering the labour market. The labour market is, therefore, structurally changing. Another reason is the continuing emigration," Galić states, adding that such trends are not bad.

"I think that's good. We had a sluggish labour market for years, and changing jobs was most often related to getting, not resigning. Now that we have a reversed situation, the consequences will be better for the workers, which is an increase in wages and greater investment in employees and their skills," the professor points out.

Regarding occupations, his research shows that the most dynamic is in the ICT and trade, transport and tourism sectors. The IT sector is characterised by a lack of specialists and the best working conditions, as IT employees will earn 1,587 euros net per month on average, data from the CBS show.

Therefore, it should not be surprising that employees in this sector easily opt for better opportunities, which are not difficult to get. On the other hand, the trade, transport and tourism sectors are characterised by low wages and worse working conditions, so it should not be surprising that people quit and look for a better job. They will, on average, earn between 878 and 1025 euros per month.

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August 5, 2022 - Croatia has for a long time had a dynamic relationship with employment, even more so the east of the country. Encouraging news of record low unemployment came in from Osijek.

As SiB writes, according to the latest data from the Osijek Regional Office of the Croatian Employment Service, at the end of June this year, 13,951 unemployed people were registered in the Osijek-Baranja County. That is 1.7% less than the previous month and 7.0% less than in June 2021. Since registered unemployment has been monitored on a statistical level, it has never happened that the number of unemployed fell below 14,000.

Record low unemployment is the result of continuous increased economic activity, the positive effects of which we are witnessing at all levels. According to the recently published data of FINA, the 2021 business year was particularly successful for entrepreneurs from Osijek-Baranja County, with total revenue of HRK 33.511 billion, which is an increase of 17.18% compared to 2020. The profit for the period amounted to HRK 1.833 billion, which is HRK 530 million or 40.68% more than in 2020, and as an export-oriented economy, the export of HRK 6.672 billion was achieved, which is an increase of 18.3% compared to 2020.

Considering the profit of entrepreneurs, Osijek-Baranja County is positioned fifth in terms of success, following the City of Zagreb, Zagreb County, Split-Dalmatia, and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, respectively.

“In addition to the growth in the number of entrepreneurs of 4.5% compared to last year, we also note a constant increase in the number of trades. At the end of June, 5,346 trades were operating in the County, which is 337 more than in June 2021. Our measures to encourage economic activity have certainly contributed to the record low numbers, by building entrepreneurial infrastructure, primarily the Economic Centre and the Regional Distribution Centre for fruits and vegetables, but also implementing specific projects to encourage employment”, said Prefect Ivan Anušić.

Osijek-Baranja is the only county in Croatia which in cooperation with the Croatian Employment Service, Osijek Regional Office, creates and finances training and retraining programs intended for long-term unemployed persons to find employment more quickly.

Over the past five years, almost 350 unemployed people have gone through various educational programs that were fully financed by the County, as well as the cost of transportation for unemployed people.

“We continuously monitor the needs of the market and try to react with our measures. The retraining and additional training financed by the Osijek-Baranja County proved to be quality measures because 60% of people find employment afterward. Considering the excellent results of the implemented activities, in the budget for 2022 we planned a record amount of HRK 600,000.00 for the continuation of these programs”, said Prefect Anušić.

The Osijek-Baranja County continues to monitor trends in the economy and encourage the development of entrepreneurship and craftsmanship, which, judging by the results of operations last year, contributed to the improvement of the entrepreneurial climate, it was concluded.

ZAGREB, 23 June, 2021 - The first meeting of a task force to prepare a new Labour Act was held on Wednesday and social partners said that it was conducted peacefully without any complex issues and that it is expected that the law, which will more clearly define "remote work," among other things, should go into force mid-next year.

After months of consultation, it has been decided that a new Labour Act will be prepared, one that is appropriate to contemporary circumstances, state-secretary in the Labour Ministry Dragan Jelić said.

The act needs to introduce novelties that emerged during the pandemic, such as remote work and working from home, said Jelić.

The task force consists of the government's social partners, employers and the unions, and it is expected that a first draft bill will be completed by the year's end.

As for remote work and work from home, the new law will define protection, obligations by employers and employees, and the necessity for mutual approval, said Jelić.

Remote work has to be based on mutual agreement

"The current Labour Act defines the possibility of remote work, many have used that. Some have signed an annex to their contract, some haven't. There were some disputes over the cost of working from home. However, I believe that we will resolve those matters in a satisfactory way," said Jelić.

President of the Independent Croatian Trade Unions Krešimir Sever expects answers to many issues to be reached through negotiation. "Today we did not discuss any of those issues, just the introduction to the Labour Act," said Sever.

The unions will demand that fixed-term contracts be reduced as one-quarter of Croatia's employees work that way. He added that the unions are categorically opposed to extending working life.

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As Mirela Lilek/Novac writes on the 27th of April, 2019, Croatia's situation still isn't good: the country is continuing to ''produce'' graduates with the third lowest employment rate in the whole of the European Union, and as a result, taxpayers pay more and more money for them. According to new data from Brussels, based on a comparative survey of youth employment among Croats with diplomas earned in the last three years, a third of highly educated people aged between 20 to 34 in Croatia have no jobs. Only Italy and Greece are worse.

Of the 28 countries EU member states, Croatia ranked 26th with a 66 percent employability rate. Four positions above Croatia lies Romania, Bulgaria is six places above, and Slovakia is nine places above. Croatia's neighbour to the north, Slovenia, is eleven places above Croatia, Poland is thirteen places above (impressively right behind Ireland and Denmark), and the Czech Republic, with an 89.9 percent employability rate which has impressed the European Commission's experts - has risen to an enviable fourth place.

Malta is in first place in Europe as an employer of its graduates with diplomas, the employment rate of Maltese students stands at a very impressive 94.5 percent, even better than Germany, which boasts a rate of 90.9 percent, followed then by the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and then Austria. The EU average is on the rise, back in 2014 it stood at 76 percent and in 2018 it stood at 80.2 percent. Unfortunately, the Croats have been close to the bottom for years, more specifically for fifteen years, as it has a below-average rate of employability in relation to the EU. Of course, rather than attempt to fix the problem directly, the Croats are doing what the Croats always do - continuing to debate and argue over who is (more) to blame for such embarrassing conditions.

Economists see the issue as being that the Croats aren't adapting easily to the market, and that Croatia also has an old education system. At Croatia's universities, they argue that the key issue isn't Croatia's higher education institutions, but an underdeveloped labour market, low personal income, and demotivating working conditions. Experts from the European Commission have given a relatively simple answer: Investing in education will benefit everyone in Europe.

Let's see how they explain their theories in some of the country's universities, starting with the largest "producers" of graduates in the entire country, the Faculty of Philosophy and Economics in Zagreb.

''We're aware of the importance of linking study programs and labour market needs. In this regard, the Faculty of Economics makes an effort to make it easier for students to access the labour market by establishing multilateral cooperation with companies and respectable institutions that enable students to perform high-quality professional practices,'' stated Sanja Sever Mališ, who deals with strategic partnerships and projects at the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb. The basic message from this particular Zagreb university is that "they connect students and employers so their best students can find work even during their studies." Therefore, there is no concern for them.

On the other hand, Vesna Vlahović-Štetić, Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy, admits that Croatia's humiliating placement at the bottom of the employability scale of graduates is still something to be very concerned about and therefore the causes of that need to be looked at.

''I assume that part of the problem lies in insufficient development and the ability of the economy and the public sector to absorb newly graduated students. On the other hand, the question is how many colleges and higher education institutions meet the needs of society with their respective programs. At the state level, in some professions there's hyper-production, and in others there is a lack of experts. Additionally, study programs should be regularly updated and developed to meet not only society's needs but also predict what competences professionals will need in the future,'' the dean says.

Data obtained through the HKO project of the Faculty of Philosophy shows that the employability of their students in the year after graduation is 75 percent. They believe this is the result of "the excellent professional and generic competences of their graduates".

"We're convinced at the Faculty of Philosophy that the study programs need to be further improved, so we have just started the study reform process and I'm sure the future employability of our students will be even better," says the university's dean.

The rector of the University of Rijeka, Snježana Prijić Samaržija, doesn't want to run away from the fact that Croatia's universities do hold a share of the responsibility for this issue but, again, she's convinced that Croatia's higher education institutions are't the key cause of the problem, but the underdeveloped labour market definitely is.

Rijeka University has eleven faculties and four departments. On their official page, they point out that they are a modern European university and a centre of excellence within the region and beyond, and that they are responsible for the social and economic development of the community. Samardžija claims that she doesn't want to relate the worrying data on the high rate of unemployed with higher education, but that "it should be borne in mind that higher education is a better job-finding guarantee, such as landing a permanent position,"

"Of course, it's possible to say that the employment rate would be higher if universities, by some automation, increased their quotas for the job-type deficit and reduced those profiles for which the employment bureaus take care of. In that sense, people often say Croatia's institutions and their enrollment policies aren't adapted to the labour market. However, the situation isn't quite that simple.

For example, the market seeks shipbuilding engineers, we have shipbuilding studies and a corresponding quota at the University of Rijeka, but there's a fall in interest for those studies. We can understand the students' fears about the situation with Croatia's shipyards, but the fact is that the need for this profession is still growing. Similarly, despite the lack of mathematics and physics teachers and the excellent studies we have, the interest doesn't match the employment opportunities,'' she explained.

The University of Rijeka decided to put seven studies ''into retirement'' this year, and isn't accepting students for them. Those are acting and media, dental hygiene, computer science in combination with professional studies of medical-lab diagnostics, mechanical engineering, shipbuilding, and electrical engineering.

On the other hand, there's a considerable level of interest in studies that don't guarantee quick and permanent employment at all, such as the arts, cultural studies, and psychology.

''Young people choose studies according to their personal interests, not just employment opportunities. They don't necessarily just want a permanent job, many of them are accustomed to gaining work experience in different institutions, at different places of work, and in different countries. More and more, they prefer to individually define the curriculum through courses and practical competences beyond their study program(s), which will make their expertise comparatively more special and desirable. In the midst of a sluggish and non-ethnological labour market, more and more students enjoy prolonged youthful relationships with their parents or rent apartments,'' says Snježana Prijić Samaržija.

"I don't want to run away from the responsibility of the university, we're constantly thinking about the jobs of the future, we're working on increasing the quota for the deficit professions and improving our students' competences to reduce the unemployment rate. However, time is needed to see the results of these measures because the higher education cycle lasts for at least five years. It should be understood that universities can't just simply increase quotas for occupations for which there's a labour market need because new employment is frozen,'' noted the Rector of the University of Rijeka.

As Croatia's paradoxical situation of having no work but plenty of jobseekers, yet plenty of work and no staff, it's hard to predict the outcome of education system reforms as the market and its needs can alter so rapidly. Will Croatian students simply continue to trickle away on the stream of a proverbial leaking tap out into Western Europe, leaving Croatia with the rather unenviable title of a country that educates its citizens for work abroad? It's likely such a scenario will continue at least for the foreseeable future. Whether or not Croatia will manage to make the necessary alterations to fix that aforementioned ''leaky tap'' in time remains to be seen.

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Click here for the original article by Mirela Lilek for Novac/Jutarnji