“Looking for a waiter/bartender and the salary that is offered ranges from 800 to 1,000 EUR,” this is only one of the many advertisements for seasonal work in Zagreb, Croatia. The summer season has started – this year’s “hit” destination for seasonal work in the catering business is Croatia, informs Portalb.mk. The salaries can reach up to 1,500 EUR. While the Croatian hotels and restaurants are full of Macedonian qualified personnel, the domestic owners are facing a deficit.
What is offered – salaries, accommodation, food, visas for work…
Greece and Croatia are the most attractive destinations for seasonal work during this summer season. Most of the employees in pubs and restaurants are leaving to work abroad. Croatia offers extremely high salaries that include accommodation, worker visas, and bonuses.
The summer peak officially starts on the 1st of June but some of the seasonal workers have left in May. On the Croatian coastline and the islands, there is a need for bartenders, waiters, cooks, cleaners, and pizza makers. The amount of the salaries depends on the position, the working hours, and experience, but the salaries aren’t below 900 EUR monthly. The advertisements are full of offers:
“Job offers for chefs, assistant cook, pizza master in a restaurant near the sea. The chef’s salary is 1,485 EUR, the pizza master’s salary is 1,215 EUR “
The chef’s monthly salary at some Croatian restaurants can reach almost 1,800 EUR, and the waiter’s salary can be over 1,200 EUR.
“The working shift is 9 hours. Accommodation on the island is provided including catering, a work permit, and paid transport to the final destination. Kitchen assistant – salary of 1,080 EUR, waiter in a restaurant 1,000 EUR.” stated another advertisement.
Apart from writers, bartenders, and cooks, the hotels in Croatia are seeking other personnel – beauticians. The working hours for these seasonal jobs are between 8 to 10 hours. In some of the job advertisements, knowledge of English language and work experience is mandatory. The interest for working abroad especially in Croatia is very big.
The season ends in October which means that with a monthly salary of at least 1,000 EUR and paid expenses on part of the employers, they can earn 4,000 EUR in a period of 4 months without the tips that the attractive tourist resorts and restaurants can significantly increase this amount.
The Macedonian catering sector lacks personnel
Restaurant owners in Macedonia say that it is almost impossible to find trained personnel for employment in the catering industry. Even though, at some catering facilities, the salaries can be above 40,000 denars, it is difficult to keep the employees from working abroad.
The catering industry together with the hotel business were in the group of sectors that were most badly hit by the COVID-pandemic. Most of them worked with losses, had to pay expenses and salaries even though they worked under restrictions. Now they are facing a massive exodus of qualified personnel.
According to the data provided by the Employment Agency, these professions are ranked high according to the number of job vacancies – they rank 4th with almost 1,000 job positions available.
There is a deficit of waiters and bartenders or the country has more than 360 available free jobs for waiters and more than 200 for bartenders. In the past few years, the problem with people leaving for seasonal work abroad is on the rise.
