Montenegro has issued more than 34,000 residence and work permits to foreign nationals since the start of the year, while unemployment stood at a record-low 7.47% in August, figures from the Employment Agency of Montenegro (ZZZCG) show. Employers’ Union of Montenegro representative Filip Lazović said labour shortages are most acute in seasonal sectors, where employers increasingly rely on foreign workers.
This year’s quota for foreign workers is 28,988, while some permits are issued outside the quota, according to the agency’s figures. About 72% of permits went to accommodation and food services, construction and other service activities.
Six coastal municipalities and Podgorica accounted for 92% of permits issued to foreign nationals, the figures show.
About 24,600 people were registered as unemployed in August, approximately 3,000 fewer than a year earlier. The agency records unemployment and information on occupations in short supply.
Deficit occupations include waiters, cooks, receptionists, bricklayers and carpenters, as well as mathematics, physics and chemistry teachers, doctors, IT specialists and engineers, according to the agency.
Seasonal sectors depend on foreign labour
Lazović identified tourism, hospitality, construction and agriculture as the seasonal activities facing the greatest difficulty finding workers. He said that without foreign labour, providing tourists with quality service would be very difficult or impossible, and that construction faced a similar problem.
Tourism and construction already rely heavily on foreign workers and would find it difficult to function without them, Lazović said. The shortage comes as employers struggle to find staff despite the decline in the number of registered unemployed people.
Goran Bubanja, an assistant director at the Employment Agency, identified a mismatch between education and employers’ needs as the first reason for the labour shortage. Employers need staff ready for the labour market immediately, while the education system develops workers over the medium and longer term, he said.
The agency says workers often lack practical knowledge and skills, and advises employers to offer competitive wages, accommodation and working conditions. Bubanja said employers unable to find workers should review their competitiveness, conditions and pay.
The Employment Agency estimates that foreign workers will remain necessary in coming years. Proposed measures include training domestic workers, aligning education with business needs and planning foreign recruitment for jobs where there are not enough local workers.
