Construction labor and skill shortages in Croatia: causes and response strategies

Scientific paper - Original scientific paper

• Author: Anita Cerić
• Author: Ivona Ivić
• Author's institution: University of Zagreb; Faculty of Civil Engineering
• Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline: TECHNICAL SCIENCES; Civil Engineering; Construction Organization and Technology

Abstract (english)

The construction labor is crucial to the construction industry, which is known globally for its creation of jobs at different skill and professional levels. The world's construction industry is currently experiencing a rapid recovery after the 2008 global crisis. This positive growth is also noticeable in Croatia. Nevertheless, the industry is experiencing a considerable shortage of skilled labor. First, this paper investigates the main causes of the current condition of the labor market through an extensive literature review and construction market analysis. Second, the case study of the Croatian construction labor market is presented. The longitudinal study of official statistical data shows that the total number of workers employed over the last 10 years has decreased significantly. There has been an increase in the number of unskilled workers and a decrease in the number of all other types of workers between 2016 and 2017. Following the literature review and market analysis, the response strategies for the problem of labor shortage in Croatian construction are provided and discussed.

• Keywords (english): construction labor; labor shortage; skill shortage; Croatian construction industry; Croatian labor market
• Language: english
• Publication type: Scientific paper - Original scientific paper
• Publication status: Published
• Peer review: Peer review - international
• Publication version: Published version
• Journal title: Organization, technology & management in construction : an international journal
• Numbering: vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 2232-2244
• p-ISSN: 1847-5450
• e-ISSN: 1847-6228
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/otmcj-2020-0019
• URN:NBN: urn:nbn:hr:237:089762
• Publication: 2020
• Type of resource: Text
• Access conditions: Open access
• Created on: 2024-09-04 09:51:31