Vidošević: Croatia Must Start Thinking About Importing Labor

A round table was held at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce on the topic of labor legislation and the economy, aimed at discussing the impact of legal changes on economic growth and employment.

Minister of Labor and Pension System Mirando Mrsić presented the pension system reform and announced changes to the Labor Law. Regarding the pension system and the announcement that retirement age will be set at 67, according to the minister, this is unlikely to happen before 2030, as a transitional system for equalizing men and women will be in place until then.

– It is important to emphasize that under the new rules, one can retire with a full pension after 41 years of service, rather than paying penalties as before. These people have contributed enough to the system, and it makes no sense to penalize them. Also, if a company goes bankrupt and you cannot find a job for two years, then workers who meet the conditions will also be able to retire early without penalties – said Mrsić.

He also announced that after GDP has been on an upward trajectory for some time, there will be changes to contributions for the second pillar. However, the minister stated that this will not come from the net salary of workers, but they will have to sit down with employers and see how to implement it.

The minister also touched upon privileged pensions, which he said will need to be changed.

– We have abolished parliamentary and official pensions, and our proposal is to align the movement of privileged pensions with the growth of the budget. We will not touch workers’ pensions – he added.

President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Nadan Vidošević emphasized that Croatia’s problem is more than 30 percent unemployment and retirees, and the system can hardly sustain this.

– We must think about immigration policy because due to birth rate policies and enrollment quotas at universities, we will have to import labor. Croatia needs two million jobs, and it will be difficult to achieve this with our own workforce – he emphasized.

Trade unionists agree with the changes in the pension system, but they are concerned about the announced changes to the labor law. They say these changes will reverse the system.

– From employers, we only receive initiatives for changing the law, not about how to create new jobs. We believe this will reverse the working atmosphere, and these changes are not good. Regarding the pension reform, we support it, but it is difficult to talk about extending the retirement age now because that is a distant future – said Damir Jakuš.

You can view the photo gallery from the round table at the Croatian Chamber of Commerce HERE