Challenges of the Unemployment Pressure and the Employment Policies in Romania During Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The most important labour market challenge in Romania before 2020, was the shortage of 600,000 workers. This affected the efficiency of the country's economic activity. However, the Covid-19 pandemic turned this shortage into an oversupply of workers the hospitality industry, due to quarantine restrictions. Moreover, in the post-industrial society there has been a marked increase in the importance of the knowledge economy and the need for a better-educated workforce. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the mismatch between the supply and demand of skilled workers. In addition, the crisis accelerated the digitization of many economic activity. In 2020, the Romanian government introduced support programmes, that included benefits for employees, who were paid by the state at 75% of their basic salary. © 2023 The Association for Social Economics.