Analyst: Labour Market Imbalances Won't Ease in Coming Years

Bratislava, February 20 (TASR) - The imbalance on the labour market won't be alleviated in the coming years, and will be further accentuated by the ageing of the population and the gradual decline of the economically active population in Slovakia, stated UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia analyst Lubomir Korsnak. "A growing, albeit slowing, economy is likely to continue to send new demands for staff in the early part of the year. However, recent months have indicated a possible return to the two-speed nature of the domestic labour market. Thus, several already announced mass layoffs could add to the unemployment numbers in the coming months. However, in a tight labour market with a record number of vacant jobs, the rise in unemployment should only be temporary and the labour market should be able to absorb the new unemployed relatively quickly," said Korsnak. According to him, the consolidation and the expected slowdown in economic growth this year, also under the influence of the introduction of US tariffs on imports from Europe, will ease the tension in the domestic labour market only partially and temporarily. He emphasised that around 40 percent of unemployed people have been registered with the labour offices for more than two years, while the number of long-term unemployed has remained virtually unchanged in recent years. "The mismatch between supply and demand for labour, in terms of regions, sectors and skills, is pushing up both the number of vacant jobs in the economy and the import of foreign labour. The overwhelming majority of foreigners go to the economically stronger regions of Slovakia, which also show the most acute shortage of workers," noted the analyst. am/mcs