Up to 300,000 Foreign Workers Are Needed in Romania by 2025

The need for foreign workers on the local market is expected to be between 200,000 and 250,000, driven by the demands of various industries, mainly in the construction and hospitality (Horeca) sectors. Romania is facing a labor crisis as a result of many Romanians leaving the country to find employment elsewhere.

Melania Pop, Business Development Manager at International Work Finder (IWF), offers commentary on the matter, pointing out that Romania could import up to 300,000 foreign workers in 2025 to cover holes in its economy if bureaucratic obstacles were removed.news articles.

Romania May Need Three Times as Many Foreign Workers as It Currently Does

The government of Romania has established an annual cap of 100,000 foreign workers, but recruitment companies are warning that this would not be enough to meet the country’s rising need.

Industry insiders estimate that the true requirement could exceed the ceiling by three times, highlighting the pressing need for regulatory changes to alleviate the labor shortfall. One of the major players in the recruitment industry, IWF, presently sources personnel from ten nations, including Egypt, the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

100,000 More Foreign Workers Are Approved by the Romanian Ministry for 2024

Less than 1% of the non-EU workers that International Work Finder (IWF), which has a 10% market share in Romania’s recruiting industry, has placed in the nation have looked for work in other Schengen countries. In its seven years of existence, IWF has become one of Romania’s biggest employers of foreign labor, having successfully hired over 15,000 non-EU workers for a variety of businesses.

IWF has been instrumental in tackling labor shortages, especially in the construction sector, which had the biggest number of openings last year—68,739 positions—thanks to its broad client base of over 600 enterprises. Other industries with severe staffing shortages include:

• Postal and Courier Operations (38,522 open positions)

• Contracting Staff (28, 237)

• eateries (26.776)

• Transport of freight by road (14,986)

• Services for Guarding and Protection  (14,257)
  

In order to address the growing demand for labor on the labor market, the Romanian Ministry of Labor and Social Solidarity has announced plans to bring in an additional 100,000 foreign workers by 2024.