Unsatisfied employees, "toxic" colleagues, unaffordable cost of living, plans to emigrate

2024-12-22 08:41:00, Ekonomi CNA

A "Monitor" survey on the conditions offered by the labor market, which was answered by 533 people, 95% of whom were highly educated, showed high levels of dissatisfaction with pay, relations with colleagues and working conditions. Lack of meritocracy, nepotism and limited career opportunities were concerns for most. Of the 518 respondents who were employed when the survey was conducted, 27.4% were dissatisfied with the level of pay and only 7.3% were very satisfied. Almost half, 49%, claimed that they receive no benefits other than salary. The Labor Code does not apply and those working in the private sector require indexation of the salary with inflation every year.

Most of those who have postgraduate degrees and a job that is considered good for our market are not satisfied with the level of pay, communication with managers and colleagues and generally with the way the Labor Code is implemented.

A survey by "Monitor", which started on October 22 of this year and lasted about a month, where 533 people were interviewed, 95% of whom had one or more degrees of higher education, showed a high level of dissatisfaction in work.

The survey was conducted online, through the ECR (Engaged Citizens Reporting) platform. The sample is random and does not constitute scientific findings.

Of the 518 respondents who were employed when the survey was conducted, 27.4% were dissatisfied with the level of pay, 21.6% were satisfied, and only 7.3% were very satisfied.

Almost half, 49%, claimed that they receive no benefits other than salary.

Findings indicate high levels of discomfort in interacting with peers and supervisors. The second most important concern was "stability and safety in the workplace" and the third most important concern was "bad working conditions, such as unsuitable offices and work tools".

For a quarter of employees with higher education, the concern was the lack of a work-life balance.

For the vast majority of employees, the challenges they face are the lack of meritocracy, the high level of corruption, informality, etc.

More than half of the respondents have limited knowledge about the rights and salary policy in their companies. 86% of them affirmed that they would not change their workplace, if a salary increase is applied and working conditions are improved.

Almost all employees in the private sector require annual indexation of salary with inflation. Most claim that in the last three years, prices have increased at a high rate and wages have not increased at all or very little.

Most of the respondents are high-level experts and suggested as an improvement the implementation of the Labor Code, a better connection of higher education with the labor market and also the orientation of the economy towards productive sectors. Many of them said that the government should increase efforts to attract foreign investment in productive sectors, as they create well-paid jobs.

A majority of employees, over 60%, claimed that they get paid holidays and have health insurance.

More than half, 57%, have 20 days of paid vacation per year, 17% claimed to have 10-15 days and 6%, 5-10 days.

73% of the survey participants were employed in the private sector, 17% in the public sector, 4% self-employed and 6% in civil society. About 65% of the participants were female.

Wages insufficient for living costs

"The salary is not enough at all. The cost of living has risen significantly, especially rents which have become unaffordable for the salary level. Basic expenses for food and transportation leave very little room for a sustainable standard of living", said an employee under 29 years old, engaged in the real estate market who is paid in the range of 95,001 - 120,000 ALL.

Of the 518 respondents who were employed, 27.4% were dissatisfied with the salary level; 21% had a neutral attitude; 21.6% were satisfied; 22.4% were slightly satisfied and only 7.3% were very satisfied.

Almost 76% of the respondents are at the peak of productivity, as they belong to the age group of 30-49 years.

"60 thousand ALL is insufficient salary to live normally. Food, meat, dairy, detergents have increased 100% compared to 3-4 years ago, the salary has not moved", said an IT expert in the private sector.

A media worker commented that "with the average gross salary in the country, only the necessary things can be bought. Other costs, such as travel, personal care, clothing, or even other non-essential items, are often not enough."

The respondents think that the minimum salary should be 60 thousand ALL and that the salary of dignity is about 3000 euros.

Almost all respondents claim that in the last decade, living costs have risen much faster than wages. The highest complaints are about the increase in rents, which are increasing their weight in total expenses. Food and detergent prices are also rated very high.

The champion who responded to the "Monitor" survey represents people in the high salary category and in well-paid professions. Some of them have commented that over 70% of their monthly salary goes to cope with everyday life.

"Costs in Albania are almost the same as any other country in Europe, but the salary is 3-4 times lower. It is impossible to afford a good living with a simple job, since health, education, etc. are extra costs for us," said a 29-year-old girl who works in a bank with a salary of 40,000 lek per month.

"With the current costs, especially in Tirana, income from wages covers normal life requirements, but it does not even allow us to create savings or make investments for the future", commented a boy employed in the banking sector, with a salary of over 120,000 ALL. per month.

"In a country where over 40% of the salary goes to food, goods are imported and the Euro weakens, making imports cheaper and surprisingly prices higher, the economic logic is lost," says another commentator.

Costs increase and the salary becomes insufficient when you have children. "If children are not included in the cost of living, they are enough. As soon as you introduce the child variable, then they become totally insufficient", says a 30-39-year-old employee in the public sector, in the field of marketing.

Other educated people claim that normality is a source of income to meet the rising cost of living. "If you don't generate additional income informally, it becomes impossible or very difficult, since the salary level is low, expenses are high, food, clothing, housing, rent, all high", says a 50- 59 years old working as an investment developer in the private sector.

The respondents also state that the cost of raising children has increased, as they also have to take care of their elderly parents. An engineer working in the public sector aged 30-39 with a salary of 95,001 - 120,000 lek per month said that "the salary is not enough when you are single or married.

With children, no, no. If you think about the elders of both of them, leave the children's 'after school'. In his comments to the survey, the engineer claimed that he has found work abroad and will leave within the year.

If a person has rent to pay, a salary of 900 euros per month is not enough. An employee in the public sector, aged 40-49, commented that "good and dignified salaries are needed (I receive almost 900 euros net, of which 380 euros go only to rent, not counting energy, water, stairs, elevator), and what remains to live with dignity?"

47% of the educated, salary less than 120 thousand ALL

Of the 518 employees who responded to the survey, over half have more than a college degree. 47% of them have salaries lower than 120 thousand ALL per month.

The survey showed that 3% of respondents had wages below or at the minimum wage level. A part of 5.8% had salaries from 50-60 thousand ALL per month. About 53% had salaries above ALL 120,000 per month. Another category, about 20%, had salaries at the level of 65-95.5 thousand ALL per month, while 15% had salaries between 95 thousand and 120 thousand ALL.

The majority of respondents were from the banking sector, 31.9%, information technology 12.2%, followed by management and sales at 12% and engineering at 7.7%.

A 40-49-year-old commentator, who works in the public administration, said that "salary increases and performance evaluations are needed. There should be work and business opportunities even outside of Tirana, that there is life in other cities, that in the administration we were left seeing illiterate people and leaders simply because they are party militants, but an educated person will not be a party member".

Another employee in the public sector thinks that the increase in the salaries of budget workers would also encourage the increase in salaries in the private sector. Also, educational policies should be focused on professions for which there is demand. 57% do not receive bonuses and rewards

The survey found that more than half of employees, 57% of them, did not receive benefits, or extras, in addition to salary such as bonuses, performance bonuses and other benefits. 42% claimed to receive benefits.

Of the 221 people receiving additional income in addition to salary, nearly 28% were dissatisfied or somewhat satisfied with the amount of remuneration and 49% were satisfied or very satisfied.

Respondents expressed concern about financial treatment not commensurate with skills.

"Currently, there is a lack of clarity and a fair link between the skills and experience of employees and the benefits they receive. Many Albanian companies rely on a small number of trusted employees who are well compensated, while the rest of the staff work in inadequate and unmotivating conditions.

Unsatisfied employees, "toxic" colleagues, unaffordable cost of

Implementation of international standards, such as continuous performance appraisal, employee compensation (eg, bonuses and 13th pay), professional development (effective training), and benefits (such as insurance funds and health coverage), still remains a challenge for most companies", commented a female aged 20-29 who worked as an appraiser in the real estate sector.

A lawyer in the public sector commented that, "the provisions of the Labor Code or the relevant legislation on working conditions must be fully and strictly respected. Motivation should be increased through the residents as much as possible, and the culture of cultivating good and loyal employees should be created, treating them well and motivating them constantly".

Another suggested that “one to two bonuses per year are needed. Also, remuneration should respect experience and results.

27% work overtime without pay

More than a quarter of respondents (27%) claimed that they work overtime and are not paid. About a quarter of the employees claimed that they work overtime and are paid, while about 46% claimed that they do not work more than the official time. People who work outside official hours and are not paid gave different reasons in their comments.

"There are times when I work overtime, but I don't get paid, as the salary is fixed monthly. Even in cases when we have problems and cannot show up for work, the working day is not removed", said a commenter, who works as an engineer in the private sector.

In addition to the private sector, those who work in the public administration also have complaints that they are not paid for overtime, despite the fact that this is clearly defined in the Labor Code.

"Because the state, in an absurd way, asks the employees of the ASHK to work on Saturdays or when there is an official holiday during the week, they are not paid because the limit of 6 months of extra hours per year has been exceeded", said an IT employee from public sector.

"In the state, they don't pay you for overtime," said another employee from the public sector.

Some commenters claimed that the companies they work for do not have a culture of paying for overtime, as they believe that all volume should be completed within eight hours. Also, among the respondents there were complaints that the authorities did not exercise controls regarding non-compliance with the Labor Code for overtime hours.

"They don't want to pay us, nor convert them into days off," said another commenter. "The Labor Code is not taken into consideration, even for extra hours on weekends and for late working hours," said another.

The biggest concerns were expressed by the employees of the banking sector, who claimed that they work outside official hours and are not paid. "The entire banking sector does not pay overtime."

The self-employed were also exposed to overtime work. "I am self-employed, I work both Saturday and Sunday, when needed to meet procedural deadlines," said one self-employed person.

A quarter thinks that education does not affect the salary

A large part of the employees think that the education has not helped them in the salary level. To the question "Do you think your education has affected the level of salary you receive?", 24% answered no and 19% said very little.

Another part, 32%, think that education affects to some extent and 24% affirmed that it affects a lot.

"There is no appropriate assessment for a professional. They are looking for experience, but they don't want to pay a lot. Or sometimes they are not able to evaluate experience, but evaluate based on education", commented a male surveyor aged 30-39, who works in marketing in the private sector.

Another commenter who worked in the public sector, but in marketing, said that “for the most part, keeping a job or getting promoted or finding a new job is not up to you. , or from the qualifications you have, but from other factors".

The Albanian labor market suffers from high turnover of employees, as almost 49% of them stay in a workplace for less than 5 years, while 51% have more than 5 years in a workplace.

Most feel that the job market offers few opportunities

Most of the respondents think that the Albanian market offers limited opportunities for their professions. 47% think that the labor market in Albania has some opportunities for their profession, but not enough, only 26% think that there are many opportunities and 20% affirmed that there are very few opportunities and for 4.2% there are no opportunities at all.

"They do 16 years of school with a degree abroad and they offer internships or minimum wages," said a surveyor who worked in the private sector in customer service.

Another commenter who works IT in the private sector said the market suffers from high concentration. "Nooooo, the market is closed as 100% of the tenders are closed. Corruption kills competition and development".

Another commenter, who works as an engineer in the private sector, said that the market offers many opportunities for his profession, but said that it is very difficult to get hired, that you need recognition or they don't pay enough.

40% of employees do not expect a salary increase

All 518 respondents of "Monitor" represent people with good job positions and almost the vast majority have higher education and post-graduate studies. 40.2% of them affirmed that the salary increase is not applied in their companies and 59.8% affirmed that the salary increase is applied.

"The salaries of the sector have been unchanged for a long time", commented an IT employee in the private sector, with a salary of over 120,000 ALL per month.

Of the people who benefit from salary increases (310 in total), 47% of them claimed that their salary changes every two to three years, only 37% claimed that their salary changes every year and 15.5% claimed that their salary increases only when the job position changes.

"Salaries do not increase in the near future, except when changing positions," commented a 20-29-year-old woman employed in the banking sector.

Of the people who receive a salary increase, 25.5% expect an increase of over 20% in the future.

19% expect an increase of up to 15%.

31% expect an increase of up to 19%.

18.4% expect growth of less than 5%.

The majority of respondents 57% claimed to have limited knowledge of the rights and salary policies followed by the companies they work for, while 43% claimed to have good knowledge.

The majority of respondents, 73% affirm that the Labor Code is applied, 19.5% affirmed that the Labor Code is not applied and only 1 commenter "said that it is partially applied".

Another commentator said that "the Labor Code is applied on a case-by-case basis, always in defense of the employer's interests."

69% of employees with high salaries want to emigrate, 14% within the year

Among employees with a high level of education, potential emigration remains high. This finding is also consistent with the results of the survey that "Monitor" did earlier in September about emigration.

The labor market survey showed that 69% of the 518 people who took part are thinking of leaving the country and only 31% have no plans to emigrate.

The fact that 14% of them have prepared the infrastructure (visas and work contracts) and will move within the year remains worrying.

24.5% of respondents have not made plans to emigrate, but in the meantime are seriously considering emigration, while about 30% have planned to leave in the coming years.

Most of those who want to emigrate, 29.6%, are considering leaving for higher salaries, while 29% claim that they do not see opportunities for career development in the domestic market, and another part, 21%, are not satisfied with working conditions.

An IT worker in the private sector aged 30-39 claimed that he will leave because "traffic and pollution have made Tirana unlivable".

Those who want to leave gave various reasons, such as poor education and health, toxic work environments and the poor social, cultural and political situation in the country.

"Relationships with colleagues", the main reason for dissatisfaction at work

The respondents have expressed a series of concerns about the work environment, but it seems that most of them, 42%, assess "communication and relations with colleagues" as a major problem in the office, while only 4.6% are very satisfied with their relations with colleagues.

The second biggest dissatisfaction is workplace security, where more than a third, 37%, consider their workplace unsafe.

"The lack of security that comes from the fact that the employer also operates in conditions of uncertainty due to very confusing tax policies", said an employee in the private sector.

Also, about a third, 35% of employees are dissatisfied with the working conditions (physical environment and work tools). While 20% considered lack of motivation and involvement in the enterprise to be the main concern.

On the other hand, only 20% of respondents feel very satisfied with the opportunities for professional development in the workplace.

On the other hand, 35-45% of respondents were somewhat satisfied with working conditions, salaries, office environment, communication with colleagues, etc. Nearly 60% of the 533 respondents were somewhat satisfied, or dissatisfied, with their workplace.

While 21% were very satisfied with the work environment and 19% were a little satisfied with the workplace.

Unsatisfied at work, age group 30-39

The most dissatisfied age group with overall working conditions belongs to 30-39 years old. Of the number of employees who are totally dissatisfied, half belong to the 30-39 age group. Also, half of the respondents who are somewhat satisfied belong to the 30-39 age group.

The 40-49 age group ranks second for the high level of dissatisfaction with the workplace, as 37% of them belong to this age group.

An employee in the public sector in the age group of 40-49 years, who deals with project management, commented that "there is a lack of salary increase according to education, experience and merit. This would reduce bribery and the alms hand.

There is a lack of personal development and there is no question of career growth, even a training seems excessive, and especially leaving the office to get information outside is a sin. These people stayed on the planes, the streets outside were full.

The working conditions are terrible, they give you a computer like a car and they say fast like a Ferrari. Correct chair, forget it. The evaluation of the work is done by the gossipers. Their communication is bipolar".

Survey data

533 people, of which 35.3% are men and 64.7% are women. Over 76% of respondents were in the 30-49 age group. Of the respondents, 15 people, or 2.8%, were unemployed.

90% of the respondents were full-time and 6%, self-employed, while the rest were part-time. Almost half of the unemployed respondents are unable to find work.

The majority of respondents were from the banking sector 31.9%, 12.2% information technology 7.7%, followed by management and sales with 12% and engineering with 7.7%.

-96.5% of the respondents had higher education, and more than half of them with post-graduate studies and doctorates.

About 53% had salaries above 120 thousand ALL per month and 12% were paid up to the minimum salary of 40 thousand ALL, other categories 20% had salaries at the level of 65-95.5 thousand ALL, while 15% had salaries between 95 thousand and 120 thousand ALL./ Monitor magazine