Regionalni klasteri i novo zapošljavanje u Hrvatskoj

The findings of the first part of the research study illustrate that during transition period in Croatia huge differences in economic development level of single regions has been noticed. This could also be seen in movements of labour market. Increasing problem of aggregate unemployment from year to year points to existence of regional structural unemployment. In the context of this larger discrepancy, regional differences have special position, that have emerge at the unemployment level and employment composition, but also in the context of new employment. Such situation is present in old and new EU members, as well as in Croatia. The analysis of latest trends in employment and unemployment movements illustrate that Croatia has the lowest employment rate between old and new EU members, and that only Slovakia and Poland have higher unemployment rates than Croatia. In circumstances of steady and increasing unemployment higher importance is aimed at labour market institution and policy development which role is particularly elaborated in third and forth part of this research. The institutional system of the labour market consist of social system of protection, flexibility of lay off security, implementation of active labour market policies and level of regional labour force mobility. All institutional forms in transitional countries have become more important in the moment of conversion to market economic conditions. The forth part of the research shows that with unemployment rate increase, duration and amount of unemployment compensation significantly decrease. The main goal was to stimulate job seekers to start look for a job and to reduce unemployment duration. Therefore in transition countries labour market policies moves from passive to active one. Mainly it can be concluded that use of passive labour market policies stimulates unemployed to stay inactive for a longer period, while active ones try to make process of employment or re-employment easier. The majority of transition countries spent less than 1% of GDP on passive and active labour market policies. The last part of the first part of the research study is directed to establishing regional differences at the Croatian labour market and the influence of the Free Business Zone Varaždin (place of biggest greenfield investment in Croatia) on job creation. The average registered yearly unemployment rate in Croatia slightly decreased from 18,0% in 2004 to 17,9% in 2005, but regional unemployment differences still remains. The number of registered vacancies at the Employment Office decreased during 2005 and regional employment in Croatia has been influenced by seasonal employment in tourism again. Setting up of Free Business Zones has more and more considerable influence on job creation in Croatia. The main goal for its foundation, besides the economic development reasons, is in attracting FDI, the new technologies development, export growth according to the export orientation of the total production in the zone, employment growth, GDP growth and increase of citizen's standard in each county. It is expected that in the Free Business Zone Varaždin from 2005 to 2008 export will exceed 500 millions Euro and that around 3500 new jobs will be created. In the absolute quantity that is maybe a small number, but if it is planned that in such way the number of new employment in Varaždinska county will increase for approximately 18% yearly, the importance of Free Business Zone in Varaždin is not questionable. It is expected that unemployment in Varaždinska county will decrease below European average in 2008. Second part of the research study emphasizes a role of regional clusters in increasing regional competitiveness. Regional clusters, which can be defined as geographically bound concentrations of interdependent firms and knowledge/technology suppliers, are seen as an important instrument for promoting competitiveness and new employment growth. In many regions, clusters are enabling firms to overcome internal limitations by joining efforts and resources with other firms, R&D institutions and universities, and public sector organisations. Clusters established at the regional level can form the perfect environment to enhance innovation by allowing firms to take advantage of specialised suppliers, local know-how, information, skills and education. The proximity of customers, competitors, suppliers, universities, and research/innovation organisations favours the growth, the employment, and the attractiveness of the regions. Theoretical foundations of the cluster concept could be found in the different approaches, such as agglomeration, or district theories, but it is mostly based on Porter,s diamond analysis. Regional clusters became the strategic development tool in achieving the Lisbon agenda in Europe. The same is the case in most post-transition economies. The situation in Croatia is different, because the institutional prerequisites for the cluster development are not completely developed. Croatia is still not divided into the regions, according to the EU standards and regional statistical accounts are not realised yet and there is no relevant basis to comparative regional statistics. There is a low level of communication and coordination between national, counties and local authorities. Adequate microeconomic policies that support cluster development are missing, such as educational policy and incentive policy to foreign direct investment. On the national level the Regional development strategy is built up, the same as the regional operational plans in most counties. Regional development agencies also exist in most counties and they are mostly engaged on the SMEs projects and other actions dealing with competitiveness building. In different counties, the various types of business integrations are created, such as districts, business zones etc. Regional clusters are foreseen as the future goals in many documents, but only one internationally recognised cluster in Croatia exists. It is BIOS cluster, in publishing and printing sector.regionalni klasteri, regionalne razlike, kreiranje novih radnih mjesta, slobodne zone

ZAPOŠLJAVANJE I JEDINSTVO DRUŠTVENIH ZNANOSTI

Employment and the Unity of Social Sciences are discussed. We argue that employment is the simplest and best indicator of human-centered sustainable and secure development.U radu se raspravlja o zapošljavanju i jedinstvu društvenih znanosti. Tvrdi se da je zapošljavanje najjednostavniji i najbolji pokazatelj ljudima okrenutog održivog i sigurnog razvoja

From Employment to Employability: the Role of Active Labor Market Policies in Croatia

High unemployment represents striking economic failures that are costly not only to individuals directly affected, but also to the economy and society as a whole. Measures of Active Labor Market Policy (ALMP) - such as training, wage subsidies, public employment measures, and job search assistance - are widely used in European countries to combat unemployment. Croatia, as an EU candidate country, also has a long tradition in ALMP since rising employment is continuously at the top of the Government policy agenda targeting at economic growth and development. The purpose of this paper is to present ALMP and their role in combating the unemployment. Particular attention will be given to the ALPM of the EU and its implications for Croatia as a candidate country. The paper is organized as follows. After introductory remarks, the section 2 provides a theoretical background on the ALMP and relevant measures and discusses the ALMP in the EU Section 3 presents the ALMP in Croatia and discusses its status and perspective. The paper concludes with the section 4, suggesting further research focus, as well as some policy suggestions.employability, active labor market policy and measures, EU, Croatia

Readiness for Employment of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities

Program Ujedinjenih naroda za razvoj (United Nations Development Programme - UNDP), Hrvatska, 2007. godine financirao je projekt The Right to Live in a Community: Social Inclusion and Persons with Disabiliities, dio kojega je i znanstveno istraživanje: Utvrđivanje spremnosti osoba s invaliditetom za zapošljavanje, dio kojega će biti prezentiran u ovom radu. Cilj je rada, na uzorku od 85 nezaposlenih osoba s intelektualnim teškoćama iz sve četiri regije Republike Hrvatske, utvrditi samoprocjenu stabilnosti njihovih profesionalnih kompetencija, razinu poduzetih aktivnosti i percipiranih prepreka pri traženju zaposlenja, kao i samoprocjenu radnih i životnih vrijednosti. Za obradu Upitnikom o zapošljavanju za osobe s invaliditetom (Kiš-Glavaš, 2007.) prikupljenih podataka, korištene su statističke metode - regresijska analiza i izračunate korelacije. Rezultati pokazuju da se razina poduzetih aktivnosti s ciljem traženja posla kod ispitanika razlikuje u odnosu na dužinu njihove nezaposlenosti te da se samoprocijenjene radne, ali i općenito životne vrijednosti ispitanika, razlikuju u odnosu na razinu njihovog zadovoljstva statusom nezaposlene osobe. Također, uočeno je da se duže nezaposleni ispitanici nisu spremni dodatno osposobljavati, kao i osobe s više radnog staža (osim ako bi netko drugi snosio troškove njihovog osposobljavanja), kao i ispitanici zadovoljni svojim statusom nezaposlene osobe te ispitanici, prema njihovoj samoprocjeni, stabilnijih profesionalnih kompetencija. U zaključku su prezentirana neka rješenja kojima bi se, sukladno individualnim osobitostima, mogla povećati spremnost, a time i razina zapošljivosti osoba s intelektualnim teškoćama. To su primjena modela Zapošljavanja uz potporu s treningom na radnom mjestu i educiranjem poslodavaca i suradnika, kao i sustavno provođenje tranzicijskih programa u periodu nezaposlenosti.In 2007, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Croatia funded the project The Right to Live in a Community: Social Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities. This paper presents a section of the results from the study Determining the Readiness for Employment of Persons with Disabilities, which is part of the aforementioned project. A total of 85 unemployed persons with intellectual disabilities from all four regions of the Republic of Croatia participated in the study. The aim was to identify how the participants self-assess the permanence of their job competencies, the extent of actions taken to seek employment, perceived barriers, and how they self-assess their career and life values. The data were collected using the Employment Questionnaire for Persons with Disabilities (Kiš-Glavaš, 2007.), and were analysed using the statistical methods of regression analysis and correlation. The results showed that the extent of actions taken to seek employment varies depending on how long participants have been unemployed, and that self-assessed career and general life values vary depending on their level of satisfaction with being unemployed. The results also showed that the following groups of participants were not willing to undergo additional training: those who were unemployed for a longer period of time, persons with longer years of service (unless somebody else would pay for the training), persons who are satisfied with being unemployed and persons who assess themselves as having more permanent job competencies. We will conclude with presenting some solutions which, according to their individual characteristics, could increase the willingness for employment, and, in consequence, the employability of persons with intellectual disabilities. These solutions include the implementation of Supportive Employment model, with training at workplace and educating employers and co-workers. They also include systematic enforcement of transition programmes during unemployment periods

Teorijski pristup aktivnim merama tržišta rada i praksa EU

Teorijski posmatrano, aktivne mere, kao instrument politike tržišta rada, uvedene su sa ciljem da se unapredi verovatnoća zapošljavanja učesnika na tržištu rada, bilo kratkoročno ili dugoročno, a takođe i da se podstakne tražnja za radom. U zavisnosti od toga, aktivne mere dobijaju različite modalitete od privremenog zapošljavanja kroz javne radove i direktnu finansijsku podršku za otvaranje novih radnih mesta do različitih vrsta dodatnog obrazovanja i obuka. Šire posmatrano, uz aktivne mere, deo aktivne politike tržišta rada su i usluge zapošljavanja koje doprinose promociji efikasnosti tržišta rada i spajanju ponude i tražnje. Aktivne mere predstavljaju način da se svetske ekonomije nose sa strukturnom nezaposlenošću ili sa nezaposlenošću koja se javlja usled promena poslovnih ciklusa ili ekonomskih kriza. Sam naziv ovih mera odvaja ih od pasivnih mera na tržištu rada koje korisnicima omogućuju primanje novčanih naknada, u paketima koji su deo mreže socijalne podrške nezaposlenim licima, ili prevremeno penzionisanje. U ovom radu je predstavljena evolucija mera aktivne politike tržišta rada, počevši od 1960ih godina, kada su one uvedene na tržišta rada nekih evropskih zemalja, do današnjih dana.U radu su takođe predstavljena i iskustva Srbije sa uvođenjem ovog oblika podrške učesnicima na tržištu rada. Srbija je tek u prvoj dekadi 21. stoljeća posvetila veću pažnju aktivnom učešću na tržištu rada, što koincidira sa intenziviranjem procesa transformacije nacionalne ekonomije

Prevođenje preporuka (za zapošljavanje) s aspekta teorije skoposa

The aim of this article is to discuss two thematic focal points using an empirical comparative analysis of Slovene and German application documents: cultural know-how as a translational communication concept (reception and production competence) and intercultural translation adaptation in the light of the skopos theory, which makes the target text the focus of research. In this context, the translator’s task is to bridge the communicative gap between source and target cultures, whereby specific, culture-bound texts must be observed as a translation challenge. The cultural heterogeneity of international application documents is a particularly prominent feature. In this time of a free market economy, worldwide competition and a global labor market, the translator takes on not only the role of a constructive language mediator, but also that of a communication expert. Translation is defined as a communicative strategy interaction, which is determined by its purpose, the skopos (Vermeer 1983: 54). How the principle of sociocultural embedding of source and target texts is applied will be analyzed on the example of German and Slovene business reference letters, taking into consideration the historical and legal contexts. Notions like the international, i.e. Slovene-German, culture of job applications, as well as the closely related, culturally-specific principles of text composition are the priority of this article in the holistic translation study of application documents, based on an empirical research of 27 German and Slovene business reference letters in translation. These translations differ considerably from one another – not only in their composition, but also regarding their embeddedness in the legal system of the respective countries and the importance accorded them in the job application process. For a positive evaluation by a personnel manager in Germany, a reference letter must be rather detailed, while short reference letters are seen as rather negative. However, in Slovenia letters have to be as short and concise as possible.Pojam kulturne različitosti međunarodnih dokumenata koji se koriste prilikom zapošljavanja sve je naglašeniji. U razdoblju slobodnog tržišta, konkurencije na svjetskoj razini i globalnog tržišta rada, prevoditelj nema više samo ulogu jezičnog posrednika, već postaje i stručnjak za komunikaciju. Prevođenje je definirano kao interakcija komunikacijske strategije, koja je određena svojom svrhom, skoposom. Na primjeru njemačkih i slovenskih pisama preporuke za zapošljavanje analizirat će se princip društveno-kulturnog položaja izvornih tekstova i njihovih prijevoda, uzimajući istovremeno u obzir povijesni i pravni kontekst. Pojmovi poput međunarodne, u ovom slučaju slovensko-njemačke kulture prijava za zapošljavanje, te usko povezanih kulturnih načela kompozicije teksta, istaknuti su kao prioritet ovog članka o holističko-translatološkom proučavanju dokumenata korištenih za zapošljavanje, a koji se temelji na empiričkoj analizi 27 prevedenih njemačkih i slovenskih preporuka za zapošljavanje. Navedeni prijevodi se uvelike razlikuju – ne samo po svojoj strukturi, već i prema položaju u pravnom sustavu u navedenim državama, te po značaju koji im se pridaje u procesu zapošljavanja. Za pozitivnu ocjenu poslodavca u Njemačkoj, pismo preporuke mora biti prilično detaljno, dok se kratka pisma preporuke smatraju relativno negativnima. U Sloveniji pak, pisma preporuke moraju biti što kraća i konciznija

Uticaj obrazovanja na smanjenje nezaposlenosti i rast preduzetničkih poslova marginalizovanih grupa

Obrazovanje nesumnjivo dobija sve važniju ulogu, s obzirom da je promenjeno tržište rada u svetu u odnosu na pre desetak i više godina. Shodno tome, u novoj ekonomiji znanja, nedostatak veština može dovesti još više do marginalizacije i isključenosti. Napredak u jačanju ovih ciljeva treba posmatrati u okviru mogućnosti svake zemlje ponaosob. U skladu s tim,postoje mnoge nacionalne, regionalne i globalne inicijative za poboljšanje kvaliteta obrazovanja i broja obrazovnih programa i institucija. Ovaj rad je orijentisan na istraživanje usmereno u pravcu utvrđivanja uticaja obrazovanja na mogućnosti zapošljavanja marginalizovanih grupa kroz pokretanje sopstvenih preduzetničkih biznisa ili rad u socijalnim preduzećima. Uzorak je obuhvatio 104 ispitanika, a istraživanje je sprovedeno u 10 nevladinih organizacija i udruženja Roma, lica sa invaliditetom i raseljenih lica sa teritorije Republike Srbije. Na osnovu dobijenih rezultata, autorka rada zaključuje da ispitanici nisu pokazali očekivano interesovanje za samozapošljavanje i pokretanje vlastitog biznisa, niti za zapošljavanje u socijalnim preduzećima. Razlog tome može se naći u nedostatku preduzetničkih veština i znanja, koje ih često osujećuju u preduzetničkim namerama. Shodno tome, ova saznanja mogu da budu veoma podsticajna za obrazovne institucije da investiraju u ove programe i vrše obuku na svim nivoima obrazovanja – u formalnoj i neformalnoj edukaciji. Osim toga, istraživanje je pokazalo da su ispitanici prednost dali zapošljavanju u javnim preduzećima u odnosu na socijalno preduzetništvo. To se objašnjava činjenicom da nisu dovoljno informisani o mogućnostima koje im ono pruža, ali i u njegovoj nedovoljnoj razvijenosti u Srbiji

Aktivne mere na tržištu rada i evaluacije uticaja

Početkom 60-ih godina prošlog veka, pre svega u skandinavskim zemljama, došlo je do šire primene aktivnih mera koje su imale uticaja na ponudu i tražnju na tržištu rada. One su bile zasnovane na kejnizijanskoj ekonomiji i u najvećem broju slučajeva su sprovođene po ad hoc principu. Već od kraja 70-ih godina počela je šira primena aktivnih mera uz značajno povećanje budžeta koji su dostizali 1-1.5% od BDP. Značajna izdvajanja za aktivne mere su dovela do stvaranja potrebe za procenom uticaja i za cost-benefit analizom. Evaluacije su u većem obimu počele da se sprovode od 80-ih godina. U prethodnih 30 godina su korišćeni brojni metodi evaluacija, od eksperimentalnih i kvazi-eksperimentalnih mikro i makro evaluacija, do merenja performasni i evaluacije procesa. Najpreciznije evaluacije zasnovane su na kompleksnim ekonometrijskim metodima, dok se u poslednjih desetak godina pojavio i značajan broj meta-analiza koje su davale obimne preglede evaluacija programa širom sveta u dugim vremenskim intervalima. Opšti zaključak je da aktivne mere nemaju jako veliki uticaj na povećanje zapošljivosti. Pokazatelji su najbolji za mere savetovanja koje se sprovode u nacionalnim agencijama za zapošljavanje, kao i za programe obuke, posebno za poznatog poslodavca. U poslednje vreme postoje neke indicije da subvencije za zapošljavane daju dobre rezultate, ali nema opšteg konsenzusa po tom pitanju. I pored veoma velikog broja radova još uvek nije sprovedeno istraživanje koje bi sveobuhvatno analiziralo efekte aktivnih mera i moglo da posluži kao model za njihovo sprovođenje na takav način da daju najbolje moguće efekte za uloženi novac