Foreigners Now Make Up More Than 20% of Czechia’s Workforce

The Czech Republic is experiencing a notable demographic shift, marked by a substantial increase in the number of foreign workers.

Nearly one-fifth of the employed population in the country is now comprised of foreigners, with over 800,000 contributing to the Czech workforce.

Of these, nearly 409,800 are from EU countries, while 285,545 hailed from Ukraine, demonstrating a significant growth since 2015.

In the past year alone, approximately 30,700 foreigners found employment in the Czech Republic. As of December, labor offices recorded a total of over 823,900 foreigners, indicating a 2.5-fold increase since the end of 2015.

According to statistics from the Czech Statistical Office (CSO), the total number of employees in the Czech Republic for the first three quarters of the previous year reached 4.23 million.

“The numbers of foreigners are growing gradually, and it’s because they are filling in the gaps in the labor market. We have a very low unemployment rate and growing wages, quicker than the western part of the EU.  It looks somehow like a brain drain from Eastern Europe,” said Dalibor Holý, Director of the Labour Market and Equal Opportunities Statistics Department.

The aging population in the Czech Republic has prompted concerns about a diminishing working-age population.

Economists highlight the crucial role of labor migrants in addressing the labor shortage, a major obstacle to the country’s economic growth.

The Czech government, acknowledging the demand for foreign labor, increased quotas last year. Labor Minister Marian Jurečka hinted at potential further increases in quotas this year if deemed necessary.

In response to the shortage, the Labor Ministry is proposing an amendment on employment, introducing a new system to facilitate the hiring of foreign workers.

This system would prioritize vetted employers and implement a points system for evaluating job applicants based on education, experience, language proficiency, and earnings.