Outcomes
Employing the Roma: Insights from Business
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4.1 Roma employment The approximate share of Roma in company workforces is shown in Figure 1. The average for the sample is 8 per cent. These are estimates only. Companies do not keep formal records of ethnicity, nor are they allowed to. The estimates include companies’ total permanently employed staff. Subcontractors/suppliers are not included. The majority of companies interviewed have 10 or fewer Roma employees. Obnova and Svik, both in Slovakia, were the largest employers with Roma accounting for about 25 per cent of staff.
4.2 Job profile The majority of companies interviewed (8 out of 13) hired Roma as unskilled labour. Seven companies employ Roma in skilled positions, and four in managerial positions. The latter group includes Krypton and Obnova, both of which are owned and run by Roma (see Box 8). Companies employing Roma in skilled or managerial positions are listed in Table 2. It should be remembered that this sample is not representative, since companies involved in the survey volunteered to participate, often because of their proactive approach to Roma employment. The results, nonetheless, illustrate the potential for Roma to join the ranks of senior management.
The results, nonetheless, illustrate the potential for Roma to join the ranks of senior management
4.3 Productivity Companies do not keep track of the productivity (i.e. output per hour) of Roma versus non-Roma employees. Nevertheless, 85 per cent of companies state that there is no perceptible difference in the level of productivity of Roma versus non-Roma. A few interviewees highlight that – due to lower levels of education and experience – Roma staff often require
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Note: Hungarian Post did not provide an estimate.
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