Labor offices limit work permits

Faced with a growing unemployment rate that hit 9.9 percent in February, Czech labor offices will limit the number of work permits renewed and issued to non-EU citizens in the Czech Republic. The decision, which went into effect March 4, was based on recommendations made by the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry.

The new measure is mostly directed toward the 66,234 "third-country nationals," or citizens of countries outside the EU and Switzerland who currently work low skill-level jobs, such as builders, cleaners and shopkeepers.

"The labor authorities should, based on our recommendation, give priority of job placement based on regional needs before issuing new permits to foreigners," said Labor and Social Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Štěpánka Filipová in a March 10 press release. "It does not mean that issuing and prolonging work permits to foreigners from third countries will be stopped across the board, as each case should be assessed individually, taking into account the personal situation of foreign workers."

According the same press release, as of February, the largest group of third-country nationals with work permits are Ukrainians, who make up 43,755 of the work force. Moldovans account for 4,475, followed by Mongolians at 3,149, Russians at 1,987 and Vietnamese at 1,981.

Andrey Matorny, spokesman for the Ukrainian Embassy in Prague, said the embassy is aware of the new measures, which would affect more than 43,000 Ukrainians, but has only heard about it through the media and is awaiting a response from the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry before making a statement.

The unemployment rate in the Czech Republic, according to the latest data from the ministry, reached a record 9.9 percent in February, or about 583,000 Czechs, and is expected to reach 10 percent by the end of March, although it is not expected to increase substantially more than this.

"Our priority is to return to work as many unemployed Czech citizens as possible and thus improve their life situation," Filipová said.

Nora Gosmanová, the managing partner of Assistance2Expats and a foreign-labor advocate, thinks the new measure may cause a stir but shouldn't affect those who work mid-level or English-language jobs.

"I don't think our clients will lose their jobs. However, we expect the process of extending their work permits or acquiring new work permits will be more strict and difficult," she said. "Particular kinds of work cannot easily be fulfilled by a Czech or EU citizen."

A major problem in the process of acquiring a work permit hinges on the inconsistent interpretation by government workers who handle the cases.

"It will depend on the specific labor officer's understanding of the new rule," Gosmanová said. "In our experience, where they should evaluate every case specifically, they often don't and make assessments based only on what they know about the rules."

The Labor and Social Affairs Ministry does not know how long the measure will last but says it is not a permanent solution.

"We really cannot anticipate how long it will last," Filipová said. "It is a reaction to the current state of unemployment in the Czech Republic, and it can be assumed that, when the situation improves, the measure will cease to exist."

Some, however, believe the decision was not motivated entirely by economics.

"I think foreigners in this country are still considered a burden on the system, and we hear unprofessional comments made by labor officers," Gosmanová said. "They might say something like, 'If foreigners don't like it, they should just go home. Why is the company not hiring a Czech anyhow?' "

- Petr Cibulka Jr. and Assem Alpysbayeva contributed to this report.

Philip Heijmans can be reached at
pheijmans@praguepost.com