Builders from Asia are heading to the Czech Republic

Prague - The Construction Entrepreneurs Association (SPS) has launched a tender for labor agencies to employ foreign workers. Companies want to more easily acquire employees through agencies, as there is currently an acute shortage. Workers could come to the Czech Republic from countries like Vietnam and China, but offers are also coming from Cambodia, Uzbekistan, and Mongolia. Bohuslav Štancl, the association's commercial and technical director, told ČTK today.
  This year, hundreds of employees are expected to come to the Czech Republic in this way. However, Štancl does not rule out that the influx could reach thousands in the future. SPS President Václav Matyáš previously stated that the domestic construction industry is short of at least around 5,000 people.
  Currently, builders are focusing on recruiting workers from Vietnam. However, they want to avoid spontaneous recruitment, and the selection of employees should be carefully organized. "In Vietnam, employees should go through at least a three-month induction to acquire basic language skills, learn how construction is done here, and how things are done," explained Štancl.
  The stay of foreign workers should not be merely short-term. "We are betting on long-term engagement, on the idea that they will integrate here; it should not just be some temporary solution," stated the representative of the association.
  Around eight to ten agencies are expected to emerge from the tender, which will cooperate with individual member companies of SPS. The selected agencies should be evenly distributed across the territory of the republic. "It would be nonsensical for an agency from Ostrava to transport workers to Plzeň," said the director.
  The construction association will not enter into contracts with the agencies after the tender process; that will be a matter for individual companies. According to Štancl, the role of SPS in this case is merely intermediary, organizational, and legal. "Several organizations are apprehensive about dealing with agencies and legal matters," he said regarding why SPS is stepping in as a mediator in the selection process.
  Among the conditions set by builders for selecting agencies is, for example, a minimum of one year of experience in the field of employment agency activities confirmed by references. Agencies must also demonstrate their readiness to secure workers abroad, such as through contracts with intermediary organizations in the country of origin. SPS also demands experience in collaboration with companies from the construction and building materials production sectors.
  The entire process is a new venture and, according to Štancl, certainly will not be without complications. Nevertheless, importing employees is one of the few ways builders can address the current bleak situation in the labor market. "Our main program, however, remains the support and development of domestic vocational education," added the director.
  Some construction companies are already seeking missing employees abroad independently. For example, the Roads and Railways Construction Company has previously announced that, in addition to Vietnam, it is looking for workers in Pakistan, while the Jihlava-based company PSJ is even seeking employees in the Philippines.
  The labor shortage is considered the main brake on further growth not only of the construction industry but also of other sectors. The same problem is currently faced by the construction industry in Slovakia and, for example, in Ukraine.