<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The paper analyses the labour force composition of two adjacent counties in north-west Romania: Maramureș and Sălaj. Regionally, employers stress the lack of available labour force and resort to commuter networks from nearby rural areas and immigrant labour. Why labour shortage? It is argued that Romania’s FDI-reliant export-led growth model factors in. Namely, the growth model’s reliance on low-cost labour that reduces employment incentives to a minimum (often minimum wage) and employment in repetitive labour-intensive activities make the prospect less attractive. If technological upgrading – requiring skilled employees – is absent, regional labour availability tends to be an issue. Alternative subsistence methods are favoured: seasonal transnational migration, household agricultural subsistence and remittances from relatives. Tying livelihood to families and households, these methods pool resources to replace (even if in part) wage labour under global market-dependency conditions.</p>
</abstract>

The paper analyses the labour force composition of two adjacent counties in north-west Romania: Maramureș and Sălaj. Regionally, employers stress the lack of available labour force and resort to commuter networks from nearby rural areas and immigrant labour. Why labour shortage? It is argued that Romania’s FDI-reliant export-led growth model factors in. Namely, the growth model’s reliance on low-cost labour that reduces employment incentives to a minimum (often minimum wage) and employment in repetitive labour-intensive activities make the prospect less attractive. If technological upgrading – requiring skilled employees – is absent, regional labour availability tends to be an issue. Alternative subsistence methods are favoured: seasonal transnational migration, household agricultural subsistence and remittances from relatives. Tying livelihood to families and households, these methods pool resources to replace (even if in part) wage labour under global market-dependency conditions.

Labour Force Composition and Labour Shortage in North-Western Romania: A Cross-Country Comparison<xref ref-type="fn" rid="j_subbs-2023-0007_fn_001"><sup>1</sup></xref>

Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai Sociologia

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Labour Force Composition and Labour Shortage in North-Western Romania: A Cross-Country Comparison

The paper analyses the labour force composition of two adjacent counties in north-west Romania: Maramureș and Sălaj. Regionally, employers stress the lack of...

Labour Force Composition and Labour Shortage in North-Western Romania: A Cross-Country Comparison¹

Publié en ligne: 21 juin 2024

Pages: 35 - 55

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/subbs-2023-0007

Mots clés
labour force, labour shortage, FDI, export-led growth model, Romania

© 2023 Ionuț Földes et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Labour Force Composition and Labour Shortage in North-Western Romania: A Cross-Country Comparison1

Publié en ligne: 21 juin 2024

Pages: 35 - 55

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/subbs-2023-0007

Mots cléslabour force, labour shortage, FDI, export-led growth model, Romania

© 2023 Ionuț Földes et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Labour Force Composition and Labour Shortage in North-Western Romania: A Cross-Country Comparison¹

Mots clés
labour force, labour shortage, FDI, export-led growth model, Romania