The Czech Republic has always been a wedge in Germany’s side, says the head of the Pilsen Chamber of Commerce – EURACTIV.cz

Companies in the Pilsen region are facing a shortage of qualified employees. A project that connects companies and schools and helps them find out what kind of education makes sense and what kind of graduates companies will be interested in in the future gives hope for the future, says Petr Papež.

Petr Papež is the chairman of the board of the Regional Chamber of Commerce in the Pilsen Region. The interview took place on the occasion of the February debate “How to attract workers to the borderlands?”, which took place in the Bavarian town of Schönsee.

In the Czech Republic, unemployment has been low for a long time. In January, according to the Office, employment was at the level of 4% and, specifically, in the Pilsen Region even at the level of 3.2%. Companies across the country are facing a shortage of qualified employees. What is the situation in the Pilsen region?

Member companies have been reporting a long-term shortage of employees across all fields and most professions. Some say that when demand for their services increases, their biggest concern isn’t where to get new technology or where to grow their business, but who will work for them.

From your point of view, does the labor market have any unused reserves?

If we talk about the Czech Republic as a whole, there are basically two options. Either we will import workers from abroad or we will have to better adjust the labor code to allow employers to effectively employ people who cannot work full-time, such as women on parental leave. The state should allow employers to offer these people a freer form of work in the form of work activity agreements or work execution agreements.

However, since this year, the amendment to the Labor Code has made it more difficult for most employers to employ contract workers. While previously the company did not have to waste a lot of administrative time with the contract manager, today there is practically no difference between having a contract manager or an employee, because the administration is almost the same. The company would rather find one employee than employ two mothers with children for the same working hours. We protect the employee’s position, but the entire work environment suffers.

Is the Pilsen region something specific from the point of view of the labor market?

The Czech Republic has always been a wedge in Germany’s side, and our region is at the head of that wedge. We are one of the most extensive regions, but at the same time we have the lowest population density. People move to work in centers such as Pilsen, Domažlice, Klatovy or Tachov, and border areas are depopulated.

We are also a logistics center. The region is crossed by most of the connecting lines from Central and Eastern Europe towards Germany. It is therefore logical that a number of German companies have subsidiaries here, which they locate in such a way that it makes sense logistically, which is mainly along the D5 highway, or in Tachovské and Domažlicko.

The Pilsen region borders Bavaria. To what extent is the presence of a large, rich neighbor advantageous for Czech businesses, and to what extent does it complicate their lives?

As an entrepreneur, the closer you are to the border, the more you struggle with the fact that the salary for the same job in Germany will be basically double. But you have to commute for such a job, there is also a language barrier, and many people will tell you that they do not intend to learn languages ​​or simply do not want to go abroad.

But we also have to realize that we are an export economy and that our exports to Germany are higher than what Russia and Turkey export to Germany combined. Our economy is always in the wake of the German one. But if something keeps our economy and our businesses afloat, it’s the Germans.

We talk together about the lack of skilled labor. Czech companies have long looked up to the German model of dual education, where vocational training is combined with work experience in companies. However, we have not been able to implement a similar system for the time being. Is there any hope for change?

Within the framework of the Regional Development Agency (its founders include the Pilsen Region, the City of Pilsen, the Chamber of Commerce and the Labor Office, note ed.) created the Employment Pact, which in the future will help us in the Plzeň region to streamline the capacities of schools so that the supply of graduates corresponds to the demand from companies.

This is also our answer to the German dual education system. We could learn from the Germans, take their good experience and transfer it to us, but what works in Germany may not yet work here.

Why do you think?

Large companies are able to offer internships to students, but the smaller the company, the greater the problem for it to join the dual education system. I am afraid that if there was pressure on the part of schools to implement dual education, then there would not be enough businesses that would be able to get involved in it and secure the necessary capacities, so that dual education would be available to everyone and at an adequate level.

This is precisely why we created the aforementioned Employment Pact. We ask companies whether they would be interested in cooperating with schools and in which fields. If students in specific fields need practice, it is necessary to find companies that will allow them practice. If the school educates CNC machinists, but the company offers internships for mechatronics, then the offer does not meet the demand. In Pact, we find out what qualifications companies need and then we try to talk to schools and tell them what fields of study will be needed and what graduates will find employment on the market.

You praise the work of the Regional Development Agency. What are similar activities financed from? Does the agency also use European funds?

The recipients of the outputs of the Regional Development Agency are the city of Plzeň, the Plzeň region, and they are also used by the principals of specific schools, but at the same time, they are not in a position to order similar surveys or concepts commercially. A considerable number of people are working on it, their activities need to be financed in some way, and European funds can be used for these purposes.

Does the Pilsen Chamber of Commerce participate in projects to support employment or increase qualifications itself?

Last year, for example, we successfully completed one larger educational project that enabled us to provide support to hundreds of companies. Companies had the opportunity to take advantage of the offer of education in the field of labor law or language skills. But we also offered a retraining welding course and we also continuously offer training in Word, Excel and other soft skills. The chamber also offers educational courses for foreigners, now mainly for Ukrainians. The courses are held in the Czech language and their goal is to enable foreigners to better integrate and fully operate in Czech companies.

The Chamber uses grant titles on an ongoing basis. In fact, it is one of the sources by which we earn for our activity, and which also allows us to provide meaningful services to members.