Raise public sector prestige first
According to LPSK chairwoman Inga Ruginienė, the list is akin to a band-aid on a broken bone and it is only a matter of time before it needs to be amended. She notes that this could have been expected because the public sector lost in its competition with the private sector and ceased to be a prestigious workplace.
Instead of talking about specific professions, I. Ruginienė believes the discussion should revolve around the whole public sector. According to her, the cabinet should set an example by adequately raising wages in line with rising prices. At the same time, the LPSK chairwoman notes the cabinet does not seem to be prepared to do so, considering the difficult negotiations over increases to the minimum monthly wage and base wage.
Simplified foreigner employment
The state high demand profession list includes 40 professions. 25 of them require particularly high qualification and are overall lacking in Lithuania. The list also eases the arrival of high qualification specialists to Lithuania with simplified migration procedures.
According to the Migration Department, so far this year around 80% of multi-use visas granted to arriving foreigners were related to them working in the country. 31 thousand visas were issued for foreigners coming to work in Lithuania this year. Meanwhile, the number of foreigners included in the list of professions in high demand arriving was 14 thousand.
The list of high demand high qualification professions does not feature teachers, analysts, project leaders-consultants and business service managers, but their arrivals are also high.
No one will work for a thousand euro in Lithuania
Multi-use visas are not issued to foreigners coming to work high professional qualification work. Instead, they have to contact the Migration Department for a permit to temporarily live in Lithuania, a Blue Card.
A Blue Card is granted for three years, when an employer commits to pay based on the employee’s progression for over a year at a wage no less than 1.5 of the country’s average working wage.
In terms of why there is a lack of those willing to work for around that wage, the LPSK chairwoman answers that the Lithuanian education system cannot keep up with demand for special qualifications. Furthermore, she notes that such specialists are in high demand everywhere, thus they leave abroad for higher wages and this process continues because of superficial emigration solutions in Lithuania.
High demand public sector professions:
- Automative engineer
- Electrical enginner
- Weak current engineer
- Electronics engineer (IT)
- Radio communications engineer
- Signaling system engineer
- Electronics and telecommunications engineer
- Doctor court psychiatrist
- Computer systems analyst
- Computer systems specialist
- Consultant on computer systems
- Computer system designer
- Software developer
- Software designer
- Computer application engineer
- Multimedia program developer
- Programmer
- Engineer programmer
- Software tester
- Database administrator
- Database developer
- Network administrator
- IT system administrator
- Computer network administrator
- Computer system engineer
- Network analyst
- Computer network administrator
- Communications programmer
- IT and communications security specialist
- Court psychologist
- Electrical energy technician
- Aviation technician
- On-duty mechanic
- Ship electro-mechanic
- Ship navigator
- Aircraft chief
- Helicopter pilot
- Flying engineer
- Phone communications technician
- Aircraft mechanic