Some companies in Kosovo complain they cannot find workers

The biggest problem remains finding seasonal workers, especially in agriculture, as well as finding qualified workers for more specific jobs.

According to official figures, unemployment in Kosovo is about 25 per cent.

A business that is hard to deal with in finding workers without any educational qualifications is also a farm that deals with the cultivation of vines, located in a mountainous village in the Pristina municipality.

Gemma: Workers leave after two days

Farmer Lulzim Xhema has a culture of about 60 gold leafy surfaces in the village of Dabishevc in Pristina's municipality. Gemma, who is already in the process of collecting and selling this product, shows that each area has a shortage of workers.

He says that four family members and four workers from his village currently work on the farm, but that he needs six more workers. During the day, he says, workers should work six hours, with an average salary of 450 euros a month.

I'm only working on strawberries this year, I've been working with tomatoes last year. Finding workers is a huge problem. It's been two-three days and they're gone, they're not here to work anymore. Despite the good pay I gave them, they refused to work. I don't have a problem with selling products as much as I ask for. I can't collect strawberries. My problem is with a shortage of workers”, Xhema tells Radio Free Europe.

The village of Dabishevc lies in the northeastern area of Kosovo, about 30km from Pristina. This village, according to the latest census held in 2011, numbers 108 people with 43 homes.

Lulzim Xhema says one of the reasons for the shortage of workers is the abandoning of the village by local residents.

The problem may be that we are located in a deeper mountainous area, about 20 miles [30 km] from Pristina. Even other villages around them have few inhabitants. One of the difficulties for workers may also be the distance and travel”, he points out.

Uka: A Problem With Qualified Workers

While on the coils farm, no adequate qualifications are required to provide a job, another company has problems finding qualified workers in a more specific industry.

Agon Uka from the company <x0);Ikona Studio”, which deals with the production of different videos, films, market advertising in and outside Kosovo, currently has 110 workers, while 70 workers are in the process of employment.

The positions offered are video editors. Uka says 100 people have applied to these positions, but the problem presents their qualifications and experience in the required field.

“We are not very satisfied, some candidates meet our demands, but even with candidates who see little potential, we try to maintain training in advance so that they too will be able to enter the recruiting process”, Uka points out.

Uka says the average salary for these positions is between 700 and 800 euros. In his view, interest is great, but hard to meet the required criteria.

One of the criteria required for the contest is the recognition of English, because of the ongoing communication they have to have with international customers to whom we perform services and this is one of the problems that exists. It may be a person who has a very good experience in the monotage, but when it comes to communication, it is a problem”, Uka says.

In the Union of Independent Unions of Kosovo, they acknowledge that there are unemployed citizens who do not want to work in the private sector, namely in the agriculture sector.

Avni Aydin, chairman of this union, points out that in this sector, owners in some cases do not respect working hours of 40 hours a week.

So the salary they present in the month is extremely small compared to working hours they achieve. This sector has repeatedly faced various problems, as the country's small number of inspectors has in a way allowed workers' rights violations by owners”, Aydin said.

Since the end of the war, Kosovo has faced high unemployment rates. According to data from the Kosovo Statistics Agency, 24.6 per cent, or over 120 thousand people are unemployed. Meanwhile, the employees are about 370 thousand people. Net salaries of most employees range from 400 to 500 euros a month.