Lack of qualified labor is becoming a serious problem for Slovakia’s automotive industry, with more than 40 percent of suppliers claiming it’s limiting their competitiveness and ability to win new contracts. That’s the conclusion of a new study compiled by PwC and the Automotive Industry Association of the SR and Slovak Automotive Institute called the Automotive Suppliers Survey 2016. Every fifth company needs more than 50 new employees per year – and one-third of them are looking to foreigners to fill the gap.
”Even if the companies succeed to find new hires, the turnover rate within the trial period and in the first year is significant and has a big impact on companies’ costs,” Peter Mrnka, director and automotive industry specialist in PwC in Slovakia told the Slovak Spectator. The suppliers remain positive, however, and predict revenue growth for 2016. They also hope that improvement could come from a dual education system that is expected to increase the number of graduates with theoretical knowledge and relevant practical technical skills.
