Slovakia Growth Exceeds 3%

Slovakia’s economic and business sectors are thriving thanks to the generally positive development of its main trading partners. Economic growth has exceeded 3% and unemployment rates are hitting historical lows, spectator.sme reported. However, employers are complaining about the lack of skilled labor force that augments the wages of workers while Prime Minister Robert Fico’s third government is introducing measures that increase employer costs. These measures impede improvement in the business environment. “It can be said that the business environment in Slovakia is worsening in the long run and that Slovakia is becoming less competitive with neighboring countries as well as other post-communist countries in the EU,” Martin Hostak of the National Union of Employers said. “The costs keep increasing due to legislative changes and this worsens competitiveness.” Peter Kremsky, executive director of the Slovak Business Alliance, sees the business environment as worsening, especially in terms of bureaucracy, equality before the law, operation of the state, law enforcement, corruption and access to a labor force.