Containing uninsured labor
Gov’t considers measures to beat gray economy in tourism and food service sectors
Official data demonstrate a murky landscape for employment in the tourism and food service industry, according to which as the number of workers increases, so do the vacancies, while unemployment benefits cost the state more than social security does for the businesses involved, pointing to widespread insurance violations.
Down the line, however the state will be called upon once more to support pensioners from the sector who didn’t have enough insurance to secure a decent pension. Employers will continue to complain that they cannot find workers with suitable qualifications, as they look for “cheap” solutions in third countries, with low wages and in some cases abhorrent living conditions, and workers will still eye working only as long as needed to claim the unemployment benefit.
Despite the 60,000 to 80,000 vacancies, employment has increased in recent years, from 295,676 jobs in 2011 to 382,597 in 2023, i.e. by 29%, reaching the highest level recorded in the sector since the bailouts period. Hiring has also increased, so in 2023 there were 1,228,053 recruitments, more than those of 2019 which were 1,192,870.
Seasonality, the main feature of a labor market where tourism is the main product, can also be seen from how many people receive the regular seasonal unemployment benefit from the Public Employment Service (DYPA) after the end of the tourism season. According to the data, while in 2009 the beneficiaries amounted to 85,888 people, in 2023 the number of beneficiaries doubled, reaching 172,485 people.
This is another record, favored by the fact that to receive the benefit for 80 days, only 100 days of insurance are required.
The government is considering measures to tighten the DYPA benefits policy, believing that some benefits act as disincentives for looking for work.
In fact, changes to the regular unemployment benefit are already being planned, which may also include the end of the seasonal benefit that the thousands of tourism workers receive in the winter.
