Registered demand for workers and trainees

The economy continued to grow in 2000, encouraging a growth in labour demand. During the year demand fluctuated in accordance with the seasonal nature of some jobs. The majority of vacancies were announced by employers in the services sector; slightly fewer were announced by the non-agricultural sector; and the smallest number was announced by the agricultural sector. As before, in two thirds of cases employers were offering temporary employment, and for half the vacancies they required people with work experience. There was also an increase in the number of vacancies filled in 2000.

Employers reported a demand for 154,911 workers and trainees to the ESS in 2000. Demand grew by 4.3% in comparison with 1999. The seasonal nature of work in some branches of the economy, most notably in those showing the greatest demand for labour, dictated movements in the volume of demand during the year. The demand for labour increases considerably in March (spring seasonal work in agriculture and construction), June (summer seasonal work in the hospitality industry and tourism) and September (resumption of commercial activities after the summer holidays). In contrast, the willingness of employers to take on new workers or trainees is much lower during the winter months, in April and in the summer.

Of the total number of registered vacancies, 146,193 (94.4%) were for workers and 8,718 (5.6%) for trainees. For several years now the balance between the demand for workers and the demand for trainees has been leaning towards the former. The demand for workers increased by 5.4% in comparison with 1999, while the demand for trainees fell by 11.1%. The demand for trainees has been falling since 1993, when the conditions changed (the subsidising of trainee periods was abolished). The demand for trainees has halved since 1993, with the proportion of demand for trainees within labour demand as a whole falling from 16.3 to 5.6%.
The proportion of demand for temporary workers, whose employment lasted an average of seven months, amounted to 70.7% of total demand in 2000, and was 0.2 percentage points lower in comparison with 1999. This shows that the trend of growing demand for permanent workers continues. Nevertheless, in comparison with the early 1990s, the proportion of offers of temporary employment was up by 9.4 percentage points.

Figure 7: Registered demand for labour and trainees by activity, 2000

In terms of sectors, the greatest demand (87,223 vacancies) was reported by the service industry (56.4% of the total), followed by the non-agricultural sector (66,031, 42.6%) and the agricultural sector (1,606, 1%). Employers from the services sector reported a 5.4% rise in comparison with 1999, from the non-agricultural sector 2.9%, and from the agricultural sector 5.3%.

Figure 9 shows the gap between labour demand and the number of unemployed people registered with the ESS by level of education. There are more unemployed people at the 1st, 2nd and 5th levels than there are employment opportunities announced by employers.

The occupational and professional profiles most frequently requested in 2000 by employers looking for workers or trainees were as follows:

• 1st and 2nd levels: unskilled workers, auxiliary workers, construction workers, cleaners, journeyman bricklayers and plasterers, carpenters, lorry drivers;
• 3rd and 4th levels: textile sewers, shelf-stockers, cabinetmakers, locksmiths, metalworkers, machinists, seamstresses, joiners, bricklayers, drivers/car mechanics, shop assistants, waiters, cooks;
• 5th level: book-keeping and accounting staff, mechanical technicians, grammar school graduates, electricians, shop managers, day-care centre assistants, medical technicians;
• 6th level: economists, mechanical engineers, construction engineers, classroom teachers, day-care centre teachers;
• 7th level: graduate economists, graduate lawyers, graduate classroom teachers, graduate mechanical engineers, graduate electrotechnical engineers, medical doctors.

Figure 8: Registered job vacancies and registered unemployed by level of education, 2000

Occupational structure of the demand for workers and trainees

In 2000 the ESS began to classify information on occupations in which employers wished to employ workers; this was done by individual occupation. The occupation was identified with the help of the standard job classification system, based on the employer's description of the work and tasks involved. This allowed the ESS to obtain a relatively clear picture of the occupational structure of labour demand.

Figure 9: Registered job vacancies by occupational group according to the Standard Classification of Occupations, 2000

Fulfilling demand

Favourable economic conditions meant that more vacancies were filled. Data on the number of people who registered for pension, disability and health insurance in 2000 shows that 77.5% of all announced vacancies were filled by new workers or trainees. In comparison with 1999, this proportion increased by 0.5 percentage points.

The number of people who filled vacancies in 1998 and 1999 was almost identical; in comparison with the previous year, however, this figure grew by 5%. This growth in the number of job placements was mainly due to the growth in the number of job placements of workers, which grew by 5.7% in comparison with the year before; at the same time, the job placement of trainees fell by 6.5%. A total of 120,130 people, of whom 113,823 were workers (94.7%) and 6,307 trainees (5.3%), filled vacancies in 2000.

3.2.	EMPLOYMENT OF FOREIGN WORKERS IN SLOVENIA AND OF SLOVENE WORKERS ABROAD IN 1999

In view of the fact that the bulk of activities in this area concern the employment of foreigners in Slovenia, it should be pointed out that the new Employment of Aliens Act (Ur. l. RS, 66/2000) was adopted in July 2000; the act specifies the conditions under which a foreign person may find employment or work in Slovenia.

This means that ESS procedures concerning the employment of or work by foreign workers were implemented under the old regulations (i.e. the Aliens Act and the Instructions on the Application of the Aliens Act) until the end of 2000.

3.2.1. Employment of foreign workers in Slovenia

With regard to the employment of foreign persons in Slovenia, 2000 was marked by an increase in demand in the construction industry and agriculture, by fewer possibilities for restricting administratively the employment of foreign persons on the basis of the Instructions on the Application of the Aliens Act (Ur. l. RS, 54/97), and by the introduction of work permits for those foreign workers who had previously regulated their status by means of a business visa.

A total of 40,623 work and personal work permits were issued in 2000; 40,320 of these permits were still valid on 31 December. Comparison with the same period in 1999 shows that there was an increase in the number of valid work and personal work permits; the number of work permits valid in December 2000 was up by 2,838 (an increase of approximately 5% compared to the same period in 1999).

In addition to the 38,437 work permits issued at the request of an employer, 2,186 personal work permits were also issued in 2000; of these, 1,568 were personal work permits for managerial staff and 650 were personal permits issued on other legal bases (Slovene expatriates to other countries, daily migrant workers). An additional 1,531 work permits were issued in 2000 to employees seconded to foreign companies operating in Slovenia and to employees of foreign companies providing cross-border services in Slovenia.

With regard to nationality, the structure of foreign workers remained more or less the same (with regard to valid work permits). The bulk is still made up of people from the countries of the former Yugoslavia. The highest number (20,192) were from Bosnia-Herzegovina, followed by Croats (8,000 valid work permits), Yugoslavs (6,025 permits) and Macedonians (3,849 work permits) and, in smaller numbers, foreign workers from the former Soviet Union (Ukraine 586 work permits, Russia 149), China (192), Italy (152) and so on.

The highest number of permits were issued by the Ljubljana RO (17,097), followed by Celje (3,596), Koper (3,364), Nova Gorica (2,419), Maribor (2,410), Velenje (2,082), HO (1,542), Novo Mesto (1,651), Sevnica (1,520), Murska Sobota (378) and Ptuj (229).

Table II: Number of work permits issued, 1992-2000

Most foreign workers are employed by the construction industry and in agriculture, followed by the public utility services, the textile industry, retail and the hospitality industry. The educational structure is consistently low and is dominated by workers who have attained the 4th level of education or below, which is understandable in view of the main reasons for their employment (structural discrepancies between supply and demand in some branches, the low cost of foreign labour, and the willingness of foreign workers to accept work under more demanding working conditions).

Since the Aliens Act, in force until 31 December 2000, did not allow for the suitable regulation of new job placements for foreign workers in Slovenia, which was thus mostly regulated by demand itself, the expectations are that in the wake of the adoption and implementation of the new Employment of Aliens Act, the trend of employing foreign workers will change considerably, since the state will have far more say in the regulation of the influx of foreign labour. The new features of the new Employment of Aliens Act provide a tool that will allow Slovenia to react appropriately as a state to modern trends and issues on the labour market, and also to protect its national interests effectively and in keeping with European standards.

Table III: Breakdown of valid permits by qualification and nationality as at 31 December 2000

Due to the very restrictive policies on the employment of foreign workers in force in other countries, the employment of Slovene workers abroad took place only to a very limited extent. No EU member state currently has an active immigration and employment policy; this is aimed at reducing unemployment on the internal EU labour market. As a result, the employment of Slovene workers abroad took place exclusively on the basis of bilateral agreements with Germany, as in the past. Three hundred and six Slovene workers left for Germany to work in seasonal jobs in agriculture, the hospitality industry, the wine industry, hop production and forestry in 2000. Fifty-five Slovene workers, of whom five were medical staff, went to Germany to improve their professional and language skills.

Figure 10: Trends in registered unemployment, 1987-2000

The first perceptible shift in the numbers of registered unemployed persons was detected in 1999: they began to fall. In addition to a number of administrative measures (the introduction of the new Employment and Insurance Against Unemployment Act, which granted people taking part in public works employed person status) and the effects of employment policy measures, the growth in employment was also a contributing factor. The number of unemployed people fell most months in 2000, apart from those months when seasonal reasons led to a higher influx of unemployed people. There were 114,348 registered unemployed people at the end of 1999; this figure was 104,583 at the end of 2000 - a fall of 8.5%.

Figure 11: Newly-registered unemployed persons by reason for registration, 1999 and 2000

A total of 92,094 people left registered unemployment in 2000, which was a fall of 1% in comparison with 1999. A total of 60,191 people found employment, which was 3.5% fewer than in 1999; of this total, 81.6% were temporary jobs. There were also slightly fewer first-time jobseekers finding employment (a 3.2% drop). However, the number of women finding employment did go up slightly (by 0.6%). In comparison with 1999, 10% more unemployed people with the 7th level of education found work, while the employment of people with other levels was lower.

The official registered unemployment rate is published by the National Statistical Office. In December 2000 it was 12% (11% for men and 13.2% for women). In comparison with December 1999, the registered unemployment rate fell by 1 percentage point (for men by 0.8 percentage point and for women by 1.2 percentage point). The annual registered unemployment rate was 12.2%, which was 1.4 percentage points lower in comparison with 1999. For men it fell by 1.3 percentage points to 11.1%, and for women by 1.5 percentage points to 13.5%.

Table IV: Table IV: Typical groups of registered unemployed, 1987-2000

* Shares by individual category of average unemployment, except for the share of those unemployed for over one year and aged over 40, which was calculated using the figures for the end of the year.

The rapid growth in unemployment in the late 1980s and early 1990s affected all categories of jobseekers. In the second half of the 1990s, when the situation on the labour market improved, it became clear that, due to their characteristics, some groups of unemployed people were less attractive to employers. Groups of people that were particularly hard to employ began to coalesce; these included older unemployed people, young people with no professional qualifications, unemployed people without suitable qualifications, disabled people, unemployed people with health and other personal or social problems, and longterm unemployed people (which encompasses most of the other categories). Such people were unable to find employment because of their social and demographic characteristics; they were also unable to find jobs because of the different labour demand structure, with most new jobs being created in the services sector and employers giving preference to more flexible workers.

Structure of registered unemployment by sex

On average, 106,601 people were unemployed in 2000; of these, 54,094 (50.7%) were women.

Age structure of registered unemployed people

The proportion of people over the age of 40 grew from 17% in 1987 to 50.7% by the end of 2000.

It is difficult for older workers to find employment. This is due to their qualifications as well as their age - employers tend to prefer younger, better-qualified people. They are also less motivated to obtain further education or find new employment. With the restructuring of the economy, the nature of demand for workers has changed. The demand for professional qualifications common among the older unemployed and typical of the industrial sector has declined, and the demand from the services sector for workers with post-secondary levels of education has increased. In a situation such as this, it comes as no surprise that the majority of older people who find themselves unemployed fail to find a new job and that the period of time spent jobless is increasing. Special attention has recently been devoted to improving the employability of this group of unemployed people as part of active employment policy measures.

The average age of unemployed persons is increasing. At the end of 2000 there were 53,062 unemployed people over 40 (50.7% of the total). In comparison with December 1999, their numbers fell by 4,649 but their proportion in total unemployment grew by 0.2 percentage points. One particular cause for concern is the increase in the numbers of people over the age of 50, where the number of unemployed persons fell by 988 but, in a single year, the proportion of over-50s increased by 1.4 percentage points.

Educational structure of registered unemployed people

In addition to other factors, the level of education attained plays a large role in job opportunities. Unemployed people with higher or university education find it easier to get work; for those who have only completed secondary school, the subjects they studied become important. When everything is taken into account, it becomes clear that it is only people with few qualifications that remain unemployed. This, combined with age and other obstacles to finding employment, makes unemployment-related problems much tougher to address.

In 2000, 47.2% of unemployed persons had attained the 1st or 2nd levels of education, 27.2% the 3rd and 4th, 21% the 5th, 2.4% the 6th, and 2.1% the 7th. In comparison with the educational structure of registered unemployment in 1999, the proportion of unemployed persons who had attained the 5th and 7th levels of education increased, the proportion of unemployed persons with the 3rd and 4th levels remained unchanged, while the proportion of persons who had attained the 1st, 2nd and 6th levels fell. These movements were the result of the structure of newly unemployed persons and of those who left unemployment. In comparative terms, there was a higher proportion of people with 1st, 2nd and 6th levels of education leaving unemployment than becoming unemployed, and in those categories whose proportion increased, the trend was the reverse - the proportion was higher among those who joined than among those who left.

Structure of registered unemployed people by duration of unemployment

Until October 1999 the number of longterm unemployed people (out of work for more than one year) grew; after that it began to fall, which is mainly due to greater control over the activity of unemployed people and their participation in active employment policy programmes, especially in public works programmes, which was above-average with regard to the total numbers of unemployed persons. Despite the fall in the number of longterm unemployed persons, there was a worrying increase in the number of unemployed people who had been registered with the ESS for more than eight years in 2000. Their numbers are still growing: in December 2000 there were 716.7% more than in December 1993, and 17.9% more than in December 1999. The numbers in other categories of people unemployed for over one year fell in 2000, most notably among those who had been unemployed for between one and two years, where a reduction of 23% was recorded between December 1999 and December 2000.

Many of the longterm unemployed were over 40 (65.2%) or had attained the 1st and 2nd levels of education (52.4%). Consequently, there was a large proportion of older longterm unemployed people with no professional qualifications (35.9% of all longterm unemployed and 22% of all unemployed persons). This tells us that every fifth person was longterm unemployed, aged over 40 and had attained the 1st or 2nd level of education. The proportion of women among the longterm unemployed was also high (51.3%); in fact, their proportion has been growing year on year, while the proportion of longterm unemployed first-time jobseekers fell (14%).

The average duration of unemployment increased from one year, eight months and ten days in December 1993 to two years, eight months and 19 days; from December 1999 to December 2000 alone, it increased by over two months.

Figure 12: Duration of unemployment of the registered unemployed, 1999 and 2000

Registered unemployment by RO

At the national level the number of unemployed persons fell by 8.5% in 2000: at the end of the year there were 104,583 people out of work. At the regional level, unemployment fell in all regions; and out of the 59 LOs, only six recorded an increase in unemployment.

Table V: Registered unemployment by RO, 2000

Basic concepts and definitions of terms used in the Labour Force Survey

The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is the most comprehensive official survey of households in Slovenia. The aim of the LFS is to gather information on the active economic engagement of the population, and the size and structural characteristics of the active and inactive populations.

The LFS is carried out in line with ILO and EU Statistical Office instructions; these allow for comparability with other countries that conduct such surveys, as well as for comparisons with data from previous years. The LFS has been in use in Slovenia since 1993. Until the end of 1996 the survey was conducted once a year; since 1997 it has been conducted on a continuous basis and the data is published quarterly. LFS results are assessments based on representative samples. In 2000 the LFS sample covered 5,351 households which, according to the principle of panel sampling, were canvassed five times, and 2,024 households which were surveyed for the first time. The first survey takes place inside the home; all subsequent surveys are conducted over the phone (if the household has no phone, they are visited by a canvasser).

The LFS classifies the population into categories by applying the active population key. Individuals are first classified as under 15 or 15 and over. The latter group is then divided by activity or contribution (or willingness to contribute) to the production of goods and services incorporated in the concept of the System of National Accounts (SNA) for calculating domestic product. Work is distinguished from other statuses according to the strict principle of "at least one hour of work against payment in a week". This criterion has been criticised by many, as this number of working hours would not be sufficient to provide for a person's basic living requirements. It nevertheless provides for an unambiguous distinction between work and non-work, which is why it continues to be used.

The above LFS concept leads to the formulation of the following categories:
Actively employed - those aged 15 or over who, during the week surveyed, performed any work against payment (monetary or other) or for profit, and those who are employed or self-employed but were temporarily absent from work during that week;
Survey unemployed - those aged 15 or over who, during the week surveyed:

• did not work (were not employed or self-employed, or did not perform any work against payment)
• were actively seeking employment (in the previous four weeks or were registered with the ESS, applied for vacancies, etc.)
• were willing to accept work within two weeks
• had already found work and were going to start after the week surveyed;

Active population - those aged 15 or over who constitute people in employment and the unemployed;
Inactive population - those aged 15 or over who are not ranked among those in employment or the unemployed.

Active population trends in 2000

There were no significant changes in the Slovenian population's economic activity in 2000. This means that a number of phenomena remained at 1999 levels while in others the trends observed in previous years continued. In 1999 the longterm trend towards a growing active population and a falling inactive population ceased. In 2000 the size of the active population remained the same as the year before (963,000). However, the structure of the group underwent a change in comparison to 1999: the number of actively employed persons grew by 2,000 to 894,000 and the number of survey-based unemployed people fell, also by 2,000, to 69,000. Of total survey-based unemployed persons, 47.8% were women. The size of the inactive population continued to grow; it rose from 690,000 in 1999 to 706,000 in 2000.

In the same period the survey-based unemployment rate fell from 7.4 to 7.2%.

The most important characteristics of the actively employed population are as follows: in the second quarter of 2000 there were 750,000 people in employment among the active population, 100,000 self-employed persons and 43,000 persons assisting family members. Of the total number of employed people, 87.1% had temporary jobs. In 2000, 59,000 (6.1% of the actively employed population) worked shorter hours. Most of them worked in agriculture, assisting family members; some were also employed in service activities. Of all actively employed people, 46.2% were women. Ten thousand people felt they were underemployed. This group of actively employed persons commonly worked less than 36 hours a week and wished to work more than they normally did.

Figure 13: Breakdown of survey-based unemployment by sex, 1994-2000

The fall in survey-based unemployment in comparison with 1999 means that Slovenia has an unemployment rate below the EU average; in the second quarter of 2000 the average unemployment rate in the EU was 8.4%. The same rate applied to Germany, in France it was 9.8%, in Portugal 4.1%, and in Austria 3.3%. In terms of central and east European countries, Slovenia's survey-based unemployment rate was lower than Poland's (16.6%) or the Czech Republic's (8.9%) but higher than Hungary's (6.7%).

Comparison of survey-based and registered unemployment

Figure 14: Survey-based unemployment rate in some OECD countries and Slovenia (2nd quarter of 2000)

A comparison between the two groups shows:

• Some 17.4% people classified as unemployed on the basis of the survey were not registered with the ESS.
• A total of 57,000 people classified as unemployed on the basis of the survey were registered with the ESS. This represents 54.3% of registered unemployed and 82.1% of people classified as unemployed on the basis of the survey.
• Some 45.7% of registered unemployed people did not meet one or more survey criteria.

  A comparison between survey-based and registered unemployment data carried out during the year showed that the difference between the two was diminishing. In 1998 the difference between registered and survey-based unemployment amounted to 6.6 percentage points and in 1999 it was 6.3 percentage points; in 2000 the difference between the registered unemployment rate (12%) and survey-based unemployment rate (7.2%) was 4.8 percentage points. A comparison between 1999 and 2000 also showed that the proportion of people who are unemployed according to both methods is growing.