The Voice of the Workers No. 6
summary of content

EMPLOYMENT OF FOREIGN WORKERS

The sixth issue of the regional newsletter “Voice of the Worker” is dedicated to the employment of foreign workers. In addition to thematic texts, the newsletter also published news about the most important activities, initiatives and actions of the trade union headquarters of the members of the Regional Trade Union Council “Solidarnost”. Thematic texts are written by experts of the trade union headquarters, while the authors of the news are trade union journalists of the headquarters or media unions. All the texts were redacted and edited by members of the “Voice of Workers” Editorial Board.

The main observations of thematic texts:

• In all the countries of the region, the trend of increasing the number of foreign workers has been visible in recent years. The largest number of foreign workers are in Slovenia and Croatia, they have a slightly smaller but significant share of the labour market in Serbia and Montenegro, while there are still relatively few of them in North Macedonia and the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
• Croatia and Slovenia abandoned the quota system and significantly liberalised the issuance of permits for foreign workers. Other countries continue to prescribe an annual quota of work permits, but there is also a visible trend of liberalisation of the system of the employment of foreign workers.
• In most countries, trade unions are not adequately involved in changes related to the employment of foreigners, and they are also dissatisfied with the lack of clear strategies for the employment of foreigners and insufficient consideration of the impact on the domestic labour market.
• Although there are no precise statistics and research on the working conditions of foreign workers, it is evident in all the countries that they are often willing to accept worse working conditions than those guaranteed by law, or wages that local workers consider too low.
• Trade unions in all the countries are aware of the need to ensure equal rights for foreign workers as well as domestic workers, including the right to unionisation and collective bargaining. Despite the efforts of some trade unions to inform them about labour rights and to organise them in trade unions, there is still no serious involvement of them in the trade union movement in any country of the region.

Trends in the employment of foreign workers

In all the countries of the region, in recent years there has been a visible trend of increasing the number of foreign workers, although its proportions are not the same everywhere. Currently, the number of foreign workers is highest in Slovenia and Croatia, but it is slowly but steadily growing in all other countries as well.

The majority of foreign workers do not stay in Slovenia permanently, but it is only a transit country for them. As many as 40 to 50% of foreign workers are employed by employers who send them to work in Western countries, mainly in construction, electro-metal industry, production and transport. At the same time, their rights are often not respected, so instead of the salary they should receive according to the rules of the country where they work, they receive Slovenian salaries. They are often not paid contributions, or receive part of their salary in the name of work-related expenses. In this way, significant social dumping occurs, for which part of the responsibility lies with the workers, who uncritically accept worse working conditions.

In Croatia, the employment of foreign workers is one of the most important trends in the labour market, but also one of the most important political issues in general. The number of foreign workers has increased dramatically from 2016, when it was almost negligible, to today, when they make up about six percent of all employees. The increased demand for workers is caused to a lesser extent by the opening of new jobs, and to a greater extent by the emigration of Croatian workers to other EU members. While Croatia has traditionally been oriented towards workers from neighbouring countries, in recent years there has been a strong trend of increasing the number of workers coming from Southeast Asian countries, especially the Philippines and Nepal.

According to estimates, there are approximately 80,000 foreign workers in Serbia. Most of them come from China, Turkey and India, and most often work in construction, hospitality, production, IT sector and agriculture. Forecasts are that in the next three years, the number of foreign workers will increase significantly, due to the opening of the regional labour market through the “Open Balkans” initiative, as well as the liberalisation of the employment of foreigners.

The lack of workers also affects Montenegro, and is most noticable in the hotel industry, catering, construction, trade and agriculture. About 20,000 foreigners work in Montenegro annually, most of them during the summer tourist season. The largest number of foreign workers comes from Russia, Turkey, other countries of the region, and Ukraine. Lately, seasonal workers are starting to come from Far Eastern countries, such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

An increasingly pronounced labour shortage affects North Macedonia as well, and the main reason for it is the constant emigration of Macedonian workers to Western European countries. The largest number of foreign workers is employed in construction, and most of them come from Nepal, Pakistan and Turkey. Foreign seasonal workers most often come from Albania.

Also in the Republika Srpska, an entity of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the emigration of local workers in search of better wages and fairer working conditions has led to a labour shortage, which in recent years has been sought to be replaced by workers from countries in the Far East. Most work permits for foreigners were issued in the construction, agriculture, processing industry, trade and service sectors. In the first six months of 2023, 1,236 work permits were issued, twice as many as in the same period last year.

The situation is similar in the Federation of B&H, the second entity of B&H, where, despite still high unemployment, there are sectors with a shortage of manpower. The reason for this is primarily the departure of domestic workers abroad in search of better incomes and working conditions, or the fact that domestic employers are not ready to offer wages that will enable workers and their families to live a normal and dignified life.

Legal framework for employment of foreign workers

In Slovenia, there is no quota system for the employment of foreign workers, but only restrictions on their employment in activities that are considered surplus, because there are enough workers on the domestic labour market. Work permits are initially tied to specific employers, and after working in Slovenia for some time, foreign workers get free access to the labour market (one year in the case of B&H and Serbia, and 20 or 30 months in the case of other third countries).

In 2020, the system of employing foreign workers was thoroughly reformed in Croatia. The previous quota system was abandoned, after the quota had been increased 35 times in the previous four years, from around 3,000 to more than 100,000 work permits. Instead, the so-called labour market test has been introduced, based on which a work permit can be issued if it is determined that there are no available workers of the required profile on the domestic labour market. In addition, there is a very wide list of deficit occupations, where almost all jobs are in construction and tourism, and for which even a labour market test is not required. The consequence is that the labour market test, which was supposed to be the basis of the new system, is not carried out in almost 85% of cases.

In Serbia, in 2023, amendments to the Law on Foreigners, the Law on Employment of Foreigners and the Law on Citizenship liberalised the conditions for the entry and employment of foreign workers. Administrative procedures have been shortened and the issuing of work permits has been simplified, but the responsibility of those who bring in foreign workers has been increased, and the entry control of citizens from countries with increased risks has been tightened. Issuance of work permits is based on a quota system, and quotas are determined according to the needs of individual activities, and also in relation to certain countries from which foreign workers come.

The employment and work of foreigners in Montenegro is regulated by the Law on Foreigners, which was adopted in 2018, and changed already the following year, when the procedures for issuing work permits were simplified. Employment of a foreigner is based on a quota set annually by the government, but trade unions and employers are included in the working group that prepares the decision.

In North Macedonia, the work of foreign workers is regulated by the Law on the Employment of Foreigners and the quota of work permits. The quota is currently 5,000 permits per year, but employers are asking for it to be doubled. According to the Federation of Free Trade Unions of Macedonia, the existing model of employing foreign workers is bad, because they are not brought in to compensate for the lack of workers in certain sectors, but because they agree to work for lower wages than Macedonian workers and in sectors where there are enough workers.

In the Republic of Srpska (RS) in 2022 the procedures for hiring foreign workers and obtaining the documents required for a work permit were simplified, and the time for issuing it was shortened. Issuance of a work permit is possible only if there is no required worker profile in the unemployment register in the place where the employer is based. The Employment Bureau of the RS, with the approval of the government, determines the annual quota of work permits, but the final decision on their number is made by the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the level of the entire state. After being the same for years, the annual quota was increased in 2022 and currently amounts to 1,400 work permits. The position of the employers is that the quota should be further increased, or even abolished completely.

In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FB&H), the employment of foreign workers is regulated by laws on foreigners and employment of foreigners, and general labour regulations. Work permits are tied to the employer, who submits the request for them, and are valid for one year, after which they can be extended. Part of the work permits are issued based on the annual quota, most of which with a labour market test, while part of the work permits are not counted in the annual quota, and most of them are issued without a labour market test. Employers in this entity exert constant pressure to increase the quota, justifying it by the lack of domestic labour, although the unemployment rate is still higher than 40%, and even the existing quota is not regularly used to the full. Thus, in 2022, the quota for the whole of B&H was 2,540 work permits, and only 1,645 foreign workers were employed. Despite this, the quota for 2023 is increased to 3,995 permits, of which 2,435 for FB&H.

Working conditions of foreign workers

In Slovenia, foreign workers often accept employment regardless of the amount of salary, and agree to work hours that are not permitted by law. There are many abuses in the entire system of employment of foreign workers, including the operation of “mail box” companies, illegal employment of workers among them, and illegal sending of workers to other users.

The liberalisation of the system of employment of foreign workers in Croatia has led to the opening of numerous companies over the past few years that base their business model exclusively on the employment of foreign workers. Although there is currently no evidence, nor sufficient quality statistics, which would indicate that under the influence of foreign workers there was a drop in the price of labour, the unions estimate that an uncontrolled approach to the employment of foreigners will produce harmful effects on the domestic labour market in the long term.

In Serbia, labour price dumping is also present through the employment of foreign workers, since they agree to work for lower wages than workers from Serbia. Cases of mass illegal work have also been recorded, including on infrastructure projects financed by the state.

In North Macedonia, there is a large number of foreign workers who work illegally, which especially applies to workers from Albania and Kosovo in construction. Illegal work is also noticable among seasonal workers in agriculture in the Republic of Srpska, as well as among seasonal workers in tourism in Montenegro.

Although they formally have the same rights as domestic workers, foreign workers in Republika Srpska generally work for the lowest wages and agree to worse working conditions. Their labour rights are often not respected, nor are they provided with adequate protection at work, which is why serious injuries and deaths at work are frequent. A special problem are foreign workers who come through employment agencies from their home countries, to whom they pay high commissions, and are often in a relationship of debt slavery. Due to low wages and poor working conditions, Republika Srpska is for many foreign workers only a transit stop in an attempt to find work in the countries of Western Europe.

The situation is similar in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as evidenced by the fact that most work permits are not renewed after the end of the first year, because foreign workers generally do not want to continue working for local employers. Even in FB&H, undeclared work by foreigners is common, especially those from neighbouring countries who can enter B$H without a visa, only with an identity card.

Unionisation of foreign workers

In most countries of the region, trade unions are not adequately involved in legislative changes related to the employment of foreigners, and they are also dissatisfied with the lack of clear strategies for the employment of foreigners and insufficient consideration of their impact on the domestic labour market. In many countries, non-involvement in these processes makes it impossible for trade unions to secure legislative changes that would create the conditions for trade union organising of foreign workers.

Trade unions in all the countries of the region are aware of the importance of ensuring equal rights for foreign and domestic workers, including the right to unionisation and collective bargaining. However, the short stay of foreign workers with their employer or in the country, frequent attachment to employment mediation agencies, language barriers and the lack of trade union tradition in the countries they come from make it difficult to organise them into trade unions in the countries of the region.

The Association of Free Trade Unions of Slovenia provides assistance to foreign workers in a special counseling centre, where, in addition to legal and trade union assistance, they are also provided with housing, social and status issues such as family reunification, tax regulations, etc.

Branch unions united in the Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Croatia strive, as much as possible, to actively work on organising foreign workers, even though they face significant language and cultural barriers in doing so.

The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of B&H, with the help of international organisations, is currently working on the preparation of informative materials in several foreign languages, with the aim of informing foreign workers about their rights at work in B&H.

News on trade union activities in the region:

The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CITUBH) announced the news about its 15th assembly. Selvedin Šatorović was re-elected as the president, while the adoption of the Law on the minimum wage in the amount of 1,000 convertible marks (500 euros) and changes to the Labour Law remain key goals of the CITUBH.

The Confederation of Trade Unions of the Republika Srpska (CTURS) reported on a series of meetings held with the state institutions on the topic of establishing a new salary system in the Republika Srpska. The priorities of the CTURS in regulating the salary system include the conclusion of the General Collective Agreement, the text of which should soon begin to be worked on by a special working group.

The Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Macedonia published news about the request of the Union of Education, Apprenticeships and Culture (SONK) to determine the representativeness of the union in the activities of education and culture. Given that the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy has been ignoring this request for some time, thereby harming union members by making collective bargaining impossible, SONK has announced mass protests if this situation does not change.

The Federation of Trade Unions of Macedonia reported on an almost two-month strike by workers in the State Prosecutor’s Office of North Macedonia. The reason for the strike were wages, and the government’s non-compliance with the obligation, stipulated in the branch collective agreement, to discuss the state budget before its adoption at the Economic and Social Council.

The Confederation of Trade Unions of Montenegro announced the news about the warning strike of workers of the maritime company “Port of Adria”, held in mid-October 2023. The reason for the strike was a demand for higher wages, which have not been increased since 2014, and the management’s unwillingness to negotiate with the union on that topic.

The Union of Free Trade Unions of Montenegro reported on the first trade union consumer basket in Montenegro, which it publicly presented at the beginning of December 2023. The calculation showed that almost 80 percent of Montenegrin citizens live in families that earn less than the estimated costs of a four-member household.

The Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia announced the establishment of the Independent Branch Trade Union for Defense and Security. With this, this headquarters received the 27th branch union, which will bring together trade union organisations in the fields of foreign affairs, defense, public security and firefighting.

The Confederation of Trade Unioins “Nezavisnost” reported on the conference called “Civil society for energy transition”, which they organised on December 1, 2023 in Belgrade. At the conference, it was pointed out that the energy transition in Serbia is greatly delayed, and that the authorities do not show a sincere readiness for a social dialogue that would ensure a fair transition to green energy sources.

The Association of Free Trade Unions of Slovenia (AFTUS) announced the news about the new rulebook on manual lifting of loads, which will significantly improve the health protection of workers, and it is a direct result of the campaign of the AFTUS and Trade Workers’ Union. The same absolute limits will no longer apply to all workers, but the maximum permissible load will be determined for each individual workplace.

The Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Croatia reported on the signing of the collective agreement for the wood and paper industry, the first new branch collective agreement in the private sector in eight years. The lowest salary level has been agreed for seven different groups of job complexity, and the base is automatically linked to the minimum salary.

Author of the summary: Darko Šeperić – Executive Secretary for Public Policies, Projects and Education (Editorial board of The voice of the Workers – VoW)