Overall boost in employment levels

The annual activity report of the National Employment Agency for 2005 indicated that the global objective of increasing the number of employed persons was exceeded. This was despite the fact that the targets set in terms of filling job vacancies were not reached in any single month. Moreover, the expenditure for active employment measures amounted to only 58% of the figure set by the national action plan for employment.

Context

Since 1999, when Romania was first invited to take part in negotiations towards accession to the European Union, the country has made every effort to transpose the acquis communautaire (EU body of law), including EU social and employment policies. The first national action plan for employment (Plan Naţional pentru Ocuparea Forţei de Muncă, PNAO) was developed for the period 2002–2003 and the second plan was drafted for 2004–2005. The content and objectives of the latter plan were structured on the basis of the national plan for development 2004–2006 and the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy.

Since this time, with the support of foreign investment, productivity and competitiveness in the Romanian economy have developed in a positive and dynamic trend. However, the processes of economic restructuring and privatisation have led to a decline in employment and to an increasing demand for professional re-qualification and flexibility of the workforce.

In terms of sector, Romania’s productivity and competitiveness are still influenced by an overemphasis on agriculture, which represents approximately 35% of employment and accounts for only 12% of gross domestic product (GDP).

PNAO objectives and results

With 10 guidelines on employment, the content of PNAO 2004–2005 included 40 objectives – three to five for every guideline – and 44 measures. Most of the latter, 11 to be precise, related to Guideline No. 4 ‘Promoting the development of human capital and lifelong learning’. The National Employment Agency (Agenţia Naţionala pentru Ocuparea Forţei de Muncă, ANOFM) is responsible for the management and implementation of PNAO measures.

A primary and practical PNAO objective for 2005 was to ensure the employment of at least 370,000 people. In 2005, according to the annual report of ANOFM, some 468,000 unemployed persons found jobs. In addition, 230,000 workers who had experienced collective redundancy or individual dismissal found another job that year.

At the end of 2005, ANOFM reported 523,000 registered unemployed persons, compared with 1.1 million people at the end of 1999. The national average unemployment rate was 5.9%, with regional differences ranging from 2.3% in Timiş county in the west of Romania and in Ilfov county encompassing the capital city, Bucharest, to 12.3% in Ialomiţa county in the southeast of the country.

Despite the number of unemployed persons, the targets set for filling job vacancies were not reached in any of the months of 2005. According to the ANOFM report, the reason for this situation was the discrepancy between job seekers’ aspirations and employers’ job offers, mainly in terms of motivation and wage level, career progression opportunities, working conditions, and health and safety at work.

Active employment measures

As an example of the results achieved within PNAO, it is worth focusing on Guideline No. 1 ‘Active and preventive measures for unemployed and inactive persons’ financed from the state budget. The table below presents a list of the planned measures to increase employment, the budget proposed by PNAO and the actual expenditure in 2005.