Too many engineers, only few foremen to hire: Turkish construction mogul

ISTANBUL

Limak Holding Chair Nihat Özdemir has complained about the lack of mid-level staff at a time when unemployment rate in Turkey is running high. 

“I cannot find foremen to hire but it is easier to find engineers. That is why the salaries of some foremen are higher than that of engineers,” Özdemir told a group of journalists, daily Dünya reported on March 1.

He noted that the nationwide jobless rate hit 13 percent, adding, “This was alarming. Because it meant that if the unemployment rate was three percent in Istanbul, it was 30 percent in the country’s eastern and southeastern regions.”

He said companies located in organized industrial zones are looking for qualified staff to hire.

“Turkey suffers from a lack of mid-level staff,” Özdemir stressed.

He also pointed out that a number of hospitals with large bed capacities are being built in Turkey but it would be difficult to find nurses who would work at those facilities.

“Those hospitals will be equipped with the state-of-art technologies but it would be difficult to find people to operate those equipment,” he said.

The government has taken steps toward reducing the jobless rate, Özdemir noted, adding that the target is to have a single-digit unemployment rate.

More investments, stable markets 

To achieve this target, more investments and government incentives are needed, according to the businessman.

“More foreign investors should be lured into the country by creating a favorable investment climate. Interest rates must fall and the local currency should not depreciate. It is difficult to make investments when interest rates are that high. Interest payments eat into companies’ revenues,” Özdemir said.

The most troubling issue for local businessmen is the volatility in the currency rates, but foreign investors are also affected by this volatility, according to Özdemir.

“Foreign investors are losing money because of the currency volatility,” he said.