Overview of Romania

Population: 19,618,996

GDP: USD 810.58 billion (2024)

Economic Overview: As per the world bank's reports, in the past two decades, Romania’s GDP per capita increased from 28% relative to the advanced economies to 58.6% in 2020. This 30-percentage-points increase makes it rank 5th in the world from 2000-2020. The world bank classified Romania's economy as a high-income country in 2019 when per capita income grew to USD 13000. The expert analysts have given a growth forecast of 1.1% between the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2021.

Market Size: The Romanian market is enough to accommodate all of its working-age population with sustainable jobs. The growth in the retail, e-commerce, IT, and service sectors is unmatchable. The predicted decrease in unemployment is a good sign for the absorption of the Romanian population seeking employment. Moreover, the connected nation has proven beneficial by addressing the talent gap caused by the pandemic.

A Brief Glimpse into the Industries

• Romania is well-connected to other nations via sea and air routes, making it a major trading nation globally. Romania has one of the largest market shares for machine tools, almost 6%. Apart from this, Romania is actively looking for export opportunities in European and American markets.
• The primary industries where Romania started to invest were crude oil, construction, mining, chemical, and telecommunication. Today, Romania is spending a lot on research and development, electronic goods, automobiles, the IT industry, and medical device manufacturing.
• The manufacturing sector is the most rapidly growing sector contributing almost 28% of the entire GDP. Romania is a manufacturer of software, semiconductors, sculptors, and machine tools in the world. The government also aims to create new jobs in this sector for the population currently seeking employment.
• The largest sector, the service sector that contributes almost 62% to the GDP, is yet to reach its optimal potential. The government is also working towards boosting the service sector and is keen to increase employment. This sector accounts for 73% of the Romanian workforce, which lags behind Japan, the U.S., and the UK.
• Romania is the leader in Europe and is six largest globally in terms of IT specialists, with more than 100,000 specialists. Romania controls 5% of the offshore software development market, ranking 3rd in the world after China and India in terms of exports. 
• The Romanian government has encouraged companies from time to time to increase employment and has made changes to the employment terms.
  

Cost of Living

The cost of living in a country depends on various factors such as which city the person lives in, the type of industry dominant in that area, state revenue, taxation policies, and much more. Location is one of the main factors that determine the cost of living. The following table gives an insight into the cost of living in Romania.

A Breakdown of the Average Cost of Living in Romania

Cost of Renting

The average cost of renting in Romania ranges from USD 300-500 per month, varying from city to city and choice of accommodation. The cost of living alone is higher than living in a shared living space.

Your Cost of Living in Romania Depends On Your Location

The cost of living varies significantly in different cities in Romania. There is a tier-wise bifurcation of cities, and the cost of living goes hierarchical with the tiers. Tier 1 cities have higher salaries; hence, they are more elevated in the cost of living. Tier 2 and tier 3 cities have different costs based on their respective economic status.

• All the major metropolitan and big cities come under Tier-1 status. These cities have higher salaries and higher costs of living. For example, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, and Lasi.
• Some cities are known as New Tier 1 towns.  These are emerging capital cities that have a very high rate of growth. Constanta, Craiova, and Brasov are some examples of new Tier 1 towns.
• Tier 2 cities are the ones that are the capital cities of a province, or even almost all big cities with decent economic growth. Galati, Ploiești, and Oradea are a few examples of Tier 2 cities.
• Lastly, the cities in the Tier 3 category are much smaller than the Tier 2 cities. These cities have low economic growth and lower cost of living.

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The Top Sectors That Are Expected to Hire in Romania in 2024

Top Skills in Romania

Romania is a nation that highly invests in skills for youth, making Romania a very dynamic job market. There are plenty of job opportunities at the entry-level for enterprising and ambitious freshers. Experienced and industry experts excel in senior-level positions.

Major industries hiring the most in Romania include:

• IT, Research, and Technology
• Vehicle Manufacturing
• Health and Fitness
• Mining and Transport
• Transportation
• Sales and Marketing
• Chemicals
• Telecommunication

Top Skills City-Wise and Occupation-Wise

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Cost of Hiring

Hiring Cost: The cost of hiring is an essential factor to consider while employing people. It depends on various other factors such as the cost of living in the city and overall expenditure in a city. When you go to hire someone in a particular city, several essential things affect the cost of hiring, such as:

• Onboarding costs
• Training
• The cost incurred in taking interviews, conducting the screening process, and completing the hiring
• Opportunity costs

Salary Structure for Various Roles

The following table reflects the average annual salary drawn by employees of various sectors in USD:

Employment Laws in Romania

Romanian employment legislation guarantees all major employer and employee benefits. These laws include, but are not limited to, the following regulatory areas:

1. safety and health at work; 
2. the framework for informing and consulting employees; 
3. posting employees; 
4. protecting Romanian citizens working abroad; 
5. material benefits, such as coupons; 
6. the general record of employees;
7. gender equality in the workplace.
   

Romania Remote Hiring Trends 2024

With a steady drop in its unemployment rate — to 5.5% in May 2023 from a 5.6% rise the previous month and projections of 5.80% by 2024 — Romania is a country that many employers are looking at in a positive light, in terms of its growing economy and work opportunities.

The Role of the Ukraine-Russia War in Romanian Hiring Trends

The Ukraine-Russia conflict has caused an influx of a sudden and unexpected Ukrainian workforce into the country, posing both challenges and opportunities.

Remote and online work platforms quickly rose to the challenge by creating Ukrainian-friendly job vacancies, which rapidly enabled many Ukrainian refugees to begin a new career — or continue with their previous one — in their new country of residence.

Romania's Most In-Demand Remote Skills and Roles

In 2023, some of the most sought-after job roles in Romania are in fields such as sales, bookkeeping, engineering, IT and production. In particular, remote applicants seem to gravitate toward job vacancies that include search terms such as artificial intelligence, big data, innovation, and digital transformation.

A recent survey identified Microsoft, Continental, Google, Oracle, IBM, Bosch Romania, Amazon, Cognizant, ING Bank Romania, eMAG, HELLA Romania, and Deloitte Romania as some of the most in-demand companies to work for in Romania.

Conclusion: How Can Skuad Help You With Hiring in Romania?

Hiring in Romania is a multi-faceted task requiring in-depth knowledge of the laws, trends, hiring costs, living costs city-wise, and more. Skuad comes onboard as a one-stop solution handling every minute aspect of recruitment. It gives you the freedom and time to focus on your project and expansion plans without any hiring stress. Connect with Skuad to know more.

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