Slovakia cooperates with Serbia to combat illegal employment

Slovakia and Serbia should engage in a more intense exchange of information on labour, as it has emerged that a number of Serbians were brought to work in Slovakia by leasing agencies that eventually deceived them, Slovak Labour Minister Jan Richter (Smer-SD) said after talks with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vulin on Monday. "Some of the agencies not only bypass the law, but they often also forge documents related to the employment of Serbian nationals in Slovakia. Several agencies are attempting to circumvent legislation in Slovakia by setting up branches in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Serbia and Romania in order to act as agents for workers to be sent to Slovakia," said Richter, adding that he has also decided to discuss the issue with authorities in the Czech Republic and Hungary. A recent report was published by a Serbian journalist who worked incognito for three months in allegedly dire conditions at the Samsung plant in Galanta (Trnava region) without a proper working permit, in what he described as slave-like conditions and for a woeful wage. Officially, close to 6,000 Serbian nationals currently work in Slovakia, most of them via leasing agencies.