Survey: COVID-19 pandemic forced Romanian employees to reduce spending, save more money

The health crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic has determined Romanian employees to save more money and cut back on spending, according to a survey conducted by the recruitment platform BestJobs. Two out of three respondents want to continue saving more and spending less after the pandemic ends.

Most respondents (60%) also said that they plan to continue paying more attention to their health and spending more time in nature, with their loved ones, after the pandemic.

Meanwhile, 48% are now used to avoid crowded areas and do more sports (39%), cook more often at home (35%), but they also plan to continue to work remotely as much as possible (32%) and buy mostly online (25%).

In terms of purchases that they postponed or reduced during the pandemic and will continue to limit in the next period, 48% of the respondents to the BestJobs survey mentioned clothes. At the same time, 45% gave up travel and vacations, another 44% decided to no longer spend their money on electronics and appliances, and 33% say they have limited hobby purchases. However, in the next period, 33% of Romanian employees plan to increase spending on holidays, while 28% want to spend more on personal care services.

Some also miss a few things from the lockdown period: 30% of those surveyed said that they lack the time spent with their loved ones, while 27.6% mentioned the state of security they felt, being less exposed to the risk of infection.

One-third of Romanian employees and 40% of employers who responded to the BestJobs survey believe that post-coronavirus recruitment will be done almost entirely online. At the same time, 29% of employees and 15% of employers believe that a video presentation will also be required in the recruitment process, in addition to resumes. Also, a quarter of employees and 35% of employers expect more skill tests to be introduced in the recruitment process.

The survey was conducted between June 26 and July 2, 2020, on a sample of 969 internet users and 142 small and medium companies in Romania.

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