Hungarian state secretary: Investments could still boost employment rate

Hungary’s employment rate is among the highest in Europe, but could be raised further with more investments, Sándor Czomba, the state secretary for employment at the National Economy Ministry, said at an informal meeting of European Union employment and social policy ministers in Budapest on Thursday.

While Hungary’s employment rate was among the lowest in Europe in 2010, it is now close to those in Scandinavia and Germany thanks to a policy offering “opportunity instead of welfare”, Czomba said. Europe needs to advance in a similar direction as competitiveness depends in large part on the condition of the labour market, he added.

Hungary considers guest workers a limited solution to the labour shortage, he said. Instead, labour market reserves need to be tapped and people trained and re-trained, he added.

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