Local Plan for Sustainable Development of Sibiu Municipality

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SIBIU
7.8%, an important increase is illustrated, starting with
1999, when the unemployment rate reached 12.3%.
This increase is mainly due to the dismissal of over
15,000 employees during the last 3 years, as a result
of the program of reorganization, privatisation, and
closing of over 50 economic units. The unemployed
workers are mainly from heavy industry, machine
constructing industry, light industry, and economic
units such as: S.C. Independenţa S.A., S.C. Compa
S.A., S.C. Construcţii S.A., S.C. Libertatea S.A.,
S.C. Cochet S.A., as well as commercial units
proceeding from the former IAS-uri.
Starting with 2000, one can note a constant decrease
in the unemployment rate (7.1% at the end of 2002),
due partly to the active measures took by the Sibiu
County Employment Agency. These measures
aimed at creating new jobs and assisting unemployed
persons in finding jobs.
• the persons dismissed through collective layoffs,
young men, women, persons unemployed
for a long time, disabled persons, Rroma, those
convicted for various offences etc.;
• For the first time, according to Law no. 76/2002
regarding the unemployment insurance system
and employment encouragement, valid from
01.03.2002, the employment of persons
belonging to disfavoured groups is supported.
This helps persons over 45 years of age, single
breadwinners in the family and new graduates,
to stimulate the labour force mobility and with
completion of incomes.
• The grant of low interest loans for new jobs
created, from which 50% is allotted to
unemployed persons.
e. Features of unemployment rate development
Unemployment affected all age categories, but most
affected are youths, particularly persons between 25-
45 years, representing 57.4% of those registered.
Unemployment development by trade categories,
during 2001-2002:
• for workers, the values were almost the same,
83.5% - 83.4 %;
• for persons with medium education, values
increased from 12.1% to 13.3 %;
• for persons with higher education, values
decreased from 4.4 % to 3.3 %.
Strong points
Implementation of an electronic system for labour mediation
(www.semm.ro), ensuring an automatic mediation between
labour demand and offer.
Implementation of active measures programmes, the main
mean for employment encouragement and prevention of long
term unemployment.
Granting loans for SMEs to create new jobs.
Creation of a coherent professional and informational
counselling system.
The yearly organization of job fairs, particularly for new
graduates.
The successful functioning in Sibiu of the project
“Professional training promoting in Romania”, having as
partners the Labour and Social Solidarity Ministry and the
Ministry of Cooperation and Economic Development in
Germany.
Weak points
Relatively high unemployment rate (below the country
average).
Lack of expertise in relationship with international institutions.
Relatively high unemployment rate among youths (18-35
years).
Low collection degree of fiscal revenues, due to requests of
many economic units to postpone the payments.
Insufficient time for the agency employees to trace vacant
jobs and to establish cooperation with economic units.
I.4.2.2. Social assistance
The Sibiu General Office for Labour and Social
solidarity, as territorial decentralised service of the
Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity, concentrated
all its activities towards the implementation of the new
settlements for fighting against poverty, social
exclusion, and unemployment and ensuring the
minimum guaranteed income and other social
services.