Hungary’s Hard Line on Immigration Softened for Some

Viktor, an ethnic Hungarian who spoke on condition his surname not be used, is one of some 43,000 Ukrainian citizens registered as working in EU member Hungary, alongside 6,200 Serbians, 2,700 Vietnamese and 1,800 Indians, according to reports citing the National Directorate of Alien Policing.

The growing number of guest workers in Hungary — and the frantic search for more to compensate for a damaging labour shortage — stands in sharp contrast to the government's official hostility towards immigrants.

Right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban has railed against immigration, throwing up fences on Hungary's borders to halt the flow of mainly Muslim migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

But on the economic front, the government is racing to reassure foreign investors they will have the manpower they need to set up shop in Hungary.

A labourer prepares a meal in 'guest worker housing' made for non-Hungarians who help plug critical holes in the workforce. Photo: BIRN

Hundreds of thousands laid off

According to the Hungarian Statistics Office, some 80,000 jobs are vacant, a number that has grown steadily since 2015.

Labour experts say some may be filled by automation, but far from all. The roots of the crisis lie in the immediate aftermath of the Cold War.

"In some professions, the whole middle generation is missing," said Eva Toth, a trade union leader in northeastern Hungary.

"At the beginning of the '90s, when factories and whole sectors were privatised, hundreds of thousands of people were laid off," Tóth told BIRN. "Many left the country and haven't come back since. It was evident already in 2010 that we will face a shortage of craftsmen."

Toth estimated that as many as 60,000 had left the...