The National Job Fair that opened in Tirana on the International Workers’ Day attracted large interest from jobseekers and a large number of young people interested in attending vocational and training programs. Widely regarded as one of the most significant events in the field of employment and labour market, the fair brought together business community, jobseekers, public and private institutions which provide employment services and the vocational training and education institutions which provide skills and trades to match with demand in the today’s labour market.
Some sixty businesses operating in various sectors of the country’s economy, including construction, banking and insurance institutions, telecommunications, transport, manufacturing and processing industry, services and trade , which offer job positions and information on paid internships, vocational and career-long training.
Prime Minister Edi Rama visited the fair and visited pavilions of various companies, asking them about their job offers, the number of their employees and the respective job positions. Business representatives expressed interest in expanding their staffs with young and skilled employees. “We need over 50 employees, managers, sellers. Minimum monthly salary ranges from 300 thousand to 500 thousand lek according to an experience and performance-based system,” said the representative of one of the biggest and renowned meat processing industry firms in the country said.
Through expansion of their businesses, the entrepreneurs also aim to successfully compete in the international market. “Preserving traditional craft skills at risk of dying out is a way to provide ample employment opportunities and, why not, by introducing the traditional heritage elements into everyday outfits, we can begin creating an Albanian brand that can become really competitive around the world,” he said.
Likewise, a recently launched project by the Tirana Municipality aimed at turning schools into community centres, after classroom hours, has generated 120 new jobs in the Albanian capital. Mayor of Tirana Erion Veliaj said: “We opened 62 school gyms in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, which means that we have created 62 new jobs for sanitation works and 60 administrators and these sports facilities will be opened to sports training and events until late night.”
The Premier Edi Rama described the job fair as an opportunity to reach out to the people by providing right information on employment and career opportunities. The government head said the employment figures are steadily improving and creation of new job positions is real.
“The job fairs we organize and we will keep on organizing in all main squares of municipalities across the country represent an opportunity to reach out to the citizens and provide them direct information and enable them to directly contact with various employers. The situation is constantly improving. There is an increase in awareness, as you can see from all contacts here with employers, about the necessity of vocational training.”
This year we have launched a serious investment as government will allocate funding for vocational training courses of all people who are excluded from the social assistance providing them a payment higher than the average of economic assistance. Indeed, all private enterprises operating in Albania offer job vacancies. It is important for the people to understand that no one will knock on their doors to ask them whether they want to work. People should not depend solely on government jobs and it is necessary to clarify it once and for good. We are acting like a major driving force towards real employment in the private sector.
Of course, when it comes to wages, they should definitely rise further, but the economy should grow first and we should all work hard together for the economy to grow. Several companies participating in the job fair offer low, medium and high-paid jobs. There are private banks looking for qualified employees, large companies looking for managers. We are in a situation with the job creation being real, but we should all fight an inherited mentality of people depending on government jobs only.
The National Job Fair in Tirana is the first in a series of regional fairs due to open during May and June under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the National Employment Service.
