6,000 job vacancies, staff shortage, the biggest threat to the summer tourist season

The crisis of recent years has changed the rules of the game: businesses are no longer looking for “the best,” but for someone to come along. With rising salaries and offers spanning every sector – from technology to construction, from tourism to services – Albanian businesses are crying out: “ The work is ready. Are you ready? ”

There are currently over 6,000 job vacancies. "If previously the most vacancies were in the processing industry, now we have a change in trend where we have many vacancies in the field of information technology, hospitality-tourism, in the field of construction. So we have a different trend," Gertiola Çepani, head of the Employment Service at AKPA, told A2 CNN.

In no sector is this gap felt more acutely than in tourism. At the height of the season, hotels are looking for receptionists, restaurants for waiters, kitchen helpers, beach guards and tour guides who tell the story of the area.

There are hundreds of businesses facing the newest challenge: tourists are coming, but staff are lacking.

"Jobs advertised in the tourism sector and now there are over 2 thousand of them. All they have to do is click and view the advertised positions. Among the advertised positions, those with low and medium education such as waiters, bartenders, cooks, etc...." added Çepani.

In some tourist areas, foreign workers have become an integral part of the staff, but this solution is like a flight with a hard landing – short-term and with risks to the stability of the sector. In the absence of investment in training and development of the local workforce, this dependence on foreigners may remain temporary and not sustainable.

"About 10 percent of those who have applied are foreign citizens, interested in working in the tourism sector," says the head of the Employment Service at AKPA.

Tourism is growing, but staff shortages remain a challenge. With improved conditions and training, we can create quality jobs and maintain the hospitality that characterizes us. (A2 Televizion)