Montenegro will gain access to the European Union’s EURES jobs network when it joins the bloc, but its workers may still face restrictions on employment in member states, Croatia’s experience shows. Those restrictions lasted seven years for Croatian workers, according to Ivana Ružman, a Croatian labour-market expert.
Access to EURES would let Montenegrin employers advertise vacancies across the European network and give jobseekers a route to share their profiles with employers abroad. It would not, by itself, guarantee that Montenegrin workers could take jobs without permits in every EU country.
Ružman said the restrictions on Croatians were introduced in stages. In the first phase, lasting two years, 13 EU member states imposed transitional periods. Five extended them for a further three-year phase, while Austria alone kept restrictions in place during the final two years.
EU member states can gradually lift employment restrictions on workers from a new member, while the new member can respond with reciprocal measures. Croatia used such measures in response to restrictions imposed on its workers. Croatian representatives regard the gradual removal of limits as a standard EU procedure for new members.
“Transitional periods are not a bad thing; they protect both your workforce and your labour market,” Ružman said. She also said that worker mobility can bring new knowledge, experience and opportunities, and may strengthen a country’s socio-economic situation.
EURES access does not remove hiring limits
Croatia joined EURES immediately after its EU accession, even though Croatian workers still needed work permits in some member states. The network is an EU database and portal matching job vacancies with people seeking work.
Montenegro’s Employment Agency is preparing to connect the country’s labour market with the European system, agency employee Gordana Vukčević said. Once connected, Montenegrin employers will be able to publish vacancies across EURES. Jobseekers will be able to transfer their CVs to the national EURES portal with their consent, and interested people will also be able to upload them themselves.
The wider labour market will increase competition for workers, with success depending on the competitiveness of their knowledge and skills. Montenegrin employers will need to offer better working conditions and higher wages to compete, according to the information provided about the expected impact of access.
Montenegro’s Ministry of Labour did not provide an answer on whether Montenegrin workers will face employment restrictions in EU member states after accession. The duration and scope of any such limits therefore remain unclear.
