The lack of Serbia’s workforce has freed up work opportunities for foreign workers, mainly in the tourism sector.

In the Zlatibor mountain in south-western Serbia, a considerable number of foreigners have been employed in several main hotels in the area.

Sandra Mena was looking for a better life and travelled from Cuba to Serbia, where she is currently working as a server in one of Mount Zlabitor’s tourist complexes.

“Even though I had my doubts, because I didn’t know what to expect, I can say that I like everything about Zlatibor. People are polite, they’ve accepted us and working conditions are good,” – said Sandra Mena Aresnibia, a Cuban citizen living in Serbia.

Sandra said that she’s is also happy with her employers. Many hotels in Zlatibor, where the tourism sector is only growing, are facing vacancies in their workforce and the only barrier for foreigners is the local language.

“We are lucky to have employees from Cuba, who have a similar mentality, which is why I haven’t faced any problems. It’s important to say that they’re more than qualified for this job, because they’ve work in various other positions in the past. Language is the only barrier for them,” – said manager, Lazar Marinkovic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the employees found other jobs, whereas others left to other places within the region and this is the reason why these big hotels started to look at foreign workers as an option.

The majority of foreign workers are usually from the Middle East, the Philippines, India and Nepal but hotel managers in Zlatibor believe that the tourism sector will keep growing after the pandemic and new jobs will be all the more available.