According to a survey by the Chamber of Commerce, 120 companies from southern Bohemia have shown interest in employing refugees from Ukraine. It offers Ukrainians over 800 vacancies, mostly in the manufacturing industry. The largest Czech dairy Madeta has already employed five people, mostly relatives of its Ukrainian workers. Kovosvit could accept 18 people, five of them women. The mayor of Budějovice, Jiří Svoboda (YES), estimated yesterday that up to 40,000 Ukrainians fleeing the war will come to the region.
The South Bohemian Chamber of Commerce conducts research at companies. So far, about 120 companies have responded, offering over 800 vacancies for Ukrainians. Of these, just over five hundred places are suitable for women. The greatest interest is in the manufacturing industry, almost half of the companies. Then a lot in services such as tourism, transport. Any major engineering company in southern Bohemia offers places; Brisk, Viscofan, Bosch, Motor Jikov and many others.
Madeta Dairy employs 1,500 people, of which Ukrainians make up five percent. The company has agreed with them to help when they need to take time off work, provide transportation, accommodation or employment for their loved ones. Madeta offers up to 30 vacancies. “We are mainly looking for professions of a technical nature, such as drivers, adjusters, maintenance workers, etc. But we are trying to help individuals from Ukraine who already work with us and need help to their relatives. Five people have already been employed,” announced spokeswoman Madeta Marta. The dairy donated half a million crowns to the Czech Red Cross to help Ukrainian children.
The engineering company Kovosvit MAS in Sezimovo Ústí with 500 employees also has vacancies. “Now we could employ 18 people from the east, there are about five suitable positions for women. At the paint shop and then at the foundry, there as crane operators or other support activities. We have good experience with crane trucks there, they are very handy, precise,” said CEO of Kovosvit Pavel Kovář. The company belongs to a Russian investment fund. Andži is the sole shareholder of Kovosvit. The company wanted to deliver ten percent of its production this year to Russia.
There were 21,106 vacancies in the region in February. More than two thirds of them offer companies to foreigners as well, according to Jiří Beran from the České Budějovice regional branch of the Labor Office. Unemployment in southern Bohemia fell by a tenth of a percentage point to three percent in February compared to January. There were 13,290 people without work.
The assistance center at the airport in Planá near České Budějovice, which started operating on March 3, will provide daily service to approximately 300 to 500 Ukrainians.
According to UN estimates, more than 1.7 million people have left Ukraine after the Russian invasion, which began on Thursday, February 24. Many of them are heading to the Czech Republic.
Source: CTK
