Coronavirus Causes Massive Layoffs Across the Balkans

Hundreds of thousands of workers in Balkan countries have lost their jobs due to economic hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, official statistical data show. And many fear the real numbers of job losses could be considerably higher, as not all countries in the region have compiled comprehensive records.

While EU member countries in the region like Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia report massive layoffs or temporary losses of work, in other countries, like Serbia, North Macedonia or Montenegro, relatively smaller official numbers of job losses are highly contested, owing to the incomplete methodology they use.

In Romania, more than a million jobs were either terminated or temporarily closed between March 16 and April 30, Labour Ministry data show. More than 725,000 of these people saw their contracts suspended, however, giving them the hope that their jobs will come back once the crisis is over. The other 276,000 joined the ranks of the long-term unemployed.

In Bulgaria, since the start of the pandemic in March, 91,783 more people have become permanently unemployed, according to Labour Ministry information published on May 1. This almost doubled the official number of unemployed to 231,000. Unemployment in Bulgaria before the health crisis erupted was low, however, standing at 4.1 per cent in December 2019.

In Croatia, some 290,000 people applied for unemployment benefit during March and April. The number in April alone was 158,795, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, HGK, said on Wednesday, based on data from the national employment bureau. A report published by HGK on April 17 said it expected this figure to fall somewhat, once the authorities start lifting restrictions, as the number of new infections dwindles.

While the jobs data...