During this period, farmers are looking for tractor drivers, but the search is all the more difficult as fewer and fewer young people are interested in learning this job, vocational schools do not teach and motivate them enough to follow this career, and older people are overtaken of the new, more expensive machines. Although in Romania there are 58 high schools with an agricultural profile, the tradesmen who graduate from the schools are very few, according to termene.ro.
“We also do their apprenticeship sometimes. After this period many leave. People often choose to go abroad,” says a farmer.
High shortage of tractor drivers
Some modern machines, which are more difficult to handle, reach the cost of 400,000 euros and employers are willing to take more money out of their pockets to pay dedicated people. I make this sacrifice because just a small mistake will send the machine straight to service. At the moment, the shortage of tractor drivers in agriculture is 300-400 workers, according to the estimates sent by the agricultural associations in a memorandum to the Ministry of Agriculture.
The main reasons why farms no longer have tractor drivers are the fact that older people do not know how to operate new machines, young people are no longer interested in the job and prefer to choose more stable jobs, and specialized high schools do not prepare students sufficiently. Most agricultural schools are in Botoșani, Buzău, Iași and Teleorman, and most students say they don’t want a future in the field, they just want to finish 12th grade.
What salaries do employers offer?
The net salary for a tractor driver starts from 3,000-4,000 lei and can reach up to 10,000 lei depending on the machine handled. The highest salaries in the field are offered in Transylvania.
“We have machines, some of which are over 300,000-400,000 euros, and when we try to look for qualified people, we run into a problem. This is because we need people who have at least a minimum of knowledge”confesses a farmer.
Dimitrie Muscă, the administrator of the farms of the Curtici Agroindustrial Complex in Arad, boasts that he gives salaries of 14,000 lei for tractor drivers. Those who operate high-performance combines can receive more than 10,000 lei per month. For those who drive older machines, the wages are lower, around 4,000 lei. “The responsibility of the one who drives the tractor is very big. In addition to the knowledge required to operate an almost fully computerized combine or a tractor of the same kind, it is very important to make decisions to avoid some problems, which could damage the machines”he says.
You can also follow Observator news on Google News and WhatsApp!
-
