Head of the Czech Chamber of Commerce warns against tightening rules for Ukrainians

Zdeněk Zajíček, President of the Czech Chamber of Commerce, has warned that tightening the conditions under which Ukrainian refugees can stay in the country could harm Czech companies, which have been struggling with labour shortages for years. He made the statement on the Agenda programme on Seznam Zprávy.

According to official data from May this year, around 400,000 Ukrainian refugees are currently in Czechia, of whom roughly 170,000 are employed. However, the conditions of their stay are becoming more complicated: since August, EU countries have stopped granting temporary protection to Ukrainian men of conscription age, and starting next year the Czech government plans to tighten both the rules for obtaining temporary protection and the conditions for issuing long-term residence permits, which allow refugees to secure more stable jobs and housing.

“We need to be careful about the conditions”

“I believe we need to be very careful about what conditions we set, especially for foreigners who are culturally and value-wise close to us and who work in Czechia,” Zajíček said. He considers Ukrainians to be the closest to Czechs in terms of culture, religion and general level of education.

“Sooner or later the war in Ukraine will end, and many Ukrainians will want to return home to take part in rebuilding the country. That risk is already facing us, and we shouldn’t make life harder for ourselves by imposing even stricter conditions specifically on their employment,” the Chamber head added.

Why simply raising wages isn’t the answer

Zajíček also rejected the argument that companies could more easily find workers if they simply paid more. According to him, wages have risen noticeably in recent years, but this trend cannot continue indefinitely.

“Every company has to produce goods and sell them, and cover its costs from that alone. If only wages keep rising while there’s no money left for investment, marketing and sales, companies will eventually have to decide: keep the business running or shut it down,” the Chamber head warned.

Betting on the Philippines

One of the main sources of foreign labour in Czechia today is the Philippines — under state quotas, up to 10,000 people a year can currently come to work in the Czech labour market from there. The Chamber of Commerce is now negotiating an increase to this limit.

“It’s a complicated discussion. We understand some of the arguments made by the Ministry of Interior and other bodies that a large concentration of citizens from other countries in certain regions can create problems — with security, social services, and integration. But the Philippines is a very interesting option, not least because it’s a country with the same Christian roots as Europe and Czechia,” Zajíček noted.

In the interview, the Chamber head also spoke about the need to distinguish between illegal migration and regulated labour migration, about insufficient investment in education, and about the draft state budget for next year.

Source: seznamzpravy.cz

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