More Asians replace Romanian construction workers, who seek better jobs in Europe

Just over a quarter (26.4%) of the large construction firms in Romania currently employ foreign workers, mainly from Asia, about 12% of them are in the process of recruiting, and another quarter (24.5%) are considering the idea of recruiting skilled workers from other countries, according to a survey carried out by IBC Focus, a company that monitors construction sites and projects in the country.

Only 37% of the large construction firms currently hire only from Romania, Agerpres reported.

In Romania, there are over 400,000 construction workers, while in Europe, there are over 700,000 Romanians active in this field, according to the Federation of Employers of Construction Societies.

According to the analysis answered by the 100 most powerful builders in Romania, 57% of the big companies say that they estimate a rise in the number of employees in the next period. This will only increase the need for foreign workers. For 2023, the Government plans to keep the quota of foreign workers at 100,000 - in order to cover the labour shortage recorded in fields such as construction, HoReCa, transport and the bakery industry.

At the same time, the loose legislation and regulations governing the recruiting and employment of foreign workers have loopholes,according to an investigation of Wall-Street.ro carried out in May this year. These loopholes are sometimes speculated by fraudulent recruiting firms that, in complicity with false employers or deceiving good-faith employers, charge large sums of money to foreign workers irrespective of their skills while not delivering (permanent) workplaces in exchange.

By law, the recruiting firms are in no way responsible for what the workers do after they enter Romanian territory. In their turn, the employers can make workers redundant during the 90-day temporary employment period - while their stay visa does not expire by default. In other cases, recruiting firms can simply help workers find their way to western Europe - their more desired destination, operating fraudulently.

(Photo source: Thanakorn Hormniam | Dreamstime.com