Romanian farmers ponder bringing in shepherds from Vietnam, Philippines

The sheep farmers in Botoşani county, in northeastern Romania, are considering bringing in workers for shepherding from the Republic of Moldova, Vietnam or The Philippines, Adevarulreported.

As it happens in other sectors, they are having difficulties in finding the needed labor force.

The option of bringing workers from Moldova would be the easiest, as they already speak Romanian, know the work and find the local salaries motivating, Ionică Nechifor, the president of the sheep farmers association Moldoovis Botoşani, told Adevarul. The farmers are asking the authorities to facilitate the access of workers from Moldova to the local labor market as the current legislation makes things difficult. Another option would be workers brought in from Vietnam or The Philippines, who could learn the language.

The farmers complain that they cannot find workers because social aid is granted too easily, Adevarul reported. They are asking the authorities to only grant the aid “to those with real health problems, those who cannot work or to those who cannot support themselves. Not to those who can work but stay at home,” Nechifor says.

The monthly salary of a shepherd averages in between RON 1,800 (EUR 378) and RON 2,500 (EUR 526). The workers also receive accommodation and food but holidays or days off are rare.

“This is continuous work. We cannot talk about holidays, days off. It’s impossible. We are trying shift work so that they would have time off but the rest of the time they need to be there,” Nechifor explained for Adevarul. This is a reason why many prefer less money from the aid than to be employed, he says.

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