Romanian employees, the most stressed and fearful in CEE, but the last to go to psychotherapy, study says

Romanian companies’ priority in 2021 is the well-being of employees in a “new normal”, but this aspect is just half as important compared to Greece, Hungary and the Czech Republic – the other three countries where the Undelucram.ro survey was conducted. The study also shows that Romanians were the most stressed and fearful employees in the region in 2020, but only 4% go to psychologists compared to 34% in the Czech Republic.

The survey conducted by Undelucram.ro, the largest online community that provides reviews about employers, salary information or work environment in companies, was made in November and December 2020. For this survey responded 1,323 companies and 8,713 employees in Romania, Greece, Hungary and the Czech Republic – countries where Undelucram has local platforms.

Well-being and employer branding – the priorities of Romanian HR specialists

Regarding the companies, the priorities of HR specialists in Romania are the well-being of employees in a “new normal” (38.2%), followed by employer branding (35%), change and crisis management (23%), recruitment and retention (20%). Although employees’ well-being is a priority in Romania, this indicator is far behind other countries in the region. In the Czech Republic, 67.5% of companies put this element first, in Hungary – 62%, and in Greece – 58.2%.

The respondents from Romania – 583 HR specialists – come mainly from IT, trade/retail, financial-banking, outsourcing services and telecommunications. On the other hand, those in Greece (202 HR specialists) work primarily in trade/retail, HoReCa, telecommunications and outsourcing. The respondents from Hungary (327) work in trade / retail, IT, industrial production, financial-banking, and the Czech Republic’s answers are from HR specialists (211) who work in IT, transport & logistics, trade / retail, telecommunications, financial-banking.

Also, 72% of HR specialists in Romania say that the main challenge they had in the last year was managing employees’ emotional state. The same challenge was in the first place in Greece and Hungary, with percentages of 83% and 74%, respectively. In contrast, in the Czech Republic, the companies’ priority was crisis management (63% of respondents in the Czech Republic said this), with employees’ emotional management being in second place (46% of companies).

When it comes to crisis management, most employees in the region believe that their employers can handle a crisis well. However, the percentage is 80% in the Czech Republic, but 46% in Romania. On the other hand, regarding this indicator, Romanian companies are at the extreme in employees’ opinion. Thus, 6% of Romania employees consider that companies in our country manage crises in an “exceptional” way. Instead, the percentages are below 0.5% in Greece and Hungary and 1.8% in the Czech Republic. On the other hand, 35% of employees consider that Romanian companies manage “poorly” crisis situations, while the percentage is 31.5% in Greece, 18% in Hungary and 11% in the Czech Republic.

Almost 60% of Romanians did not think of going to a psychotherapist in 2020

Romanians and Greeks seem to have been among the most affected employees by the pandemic. Thus, 40% of Romanian employees say that their emotional state has been greatly affected by the pandemic, while in the case of Greeks the percentage is 48%. On the other hand, 30% of Hungarian employees and 18% of Czechs were emotionally affected.

The study shows that Romanians and Greeks are the most stressed in the region (20%, respectively 18%) and the most fearful (48%, respectively 38%). On the other hand, the Czechs faced mainly anxiety (48%) and Hungarians faced depression (8%). The most nervous in the pandemic were employees in Greece (38%).

Although they say they have been affected by the pandemic, Romanian employees are in the last place in terms of psychotherapy services. About 57.5% of Romanian employees say they did not think of going to a psychotherapist the previous year, and 34% thought very little. Thus, in the pandemic, only 4% of Romanian employees turned to a psychologist. The percentage is 6% in Greece, 14% in Hungary and 34.2% in the Czech Republic.

“This survey shows the effects of the pandemic on the emotional state of employees in Romania, but also in the region. We notice that employees’ well-being in a “new normal” is a priority for companies, which makes us happy, but recently we noticed that well-being budgets were the first to be reduced in the crisis. Also, the emphasis on well-being is almost half compared to other countries in the region. This is also because more developed countries in the area have a tradition – investing in well-being for about 10-15 years, while in Romania this trend has appeared in the last five to six years. Also, Romanian employees say they are very stressed and fearful but do not resort to therapy. We recommend HR specialists to be as close as possible to employees, both through individual discussions and through team programs”, says Costin Tudor, founder and CEO of Undelucram.ro.

Higher salaries, health and education – the reasons why Romanians would like to leave Romania

Hungarians are most eager to move to another country after the crisis ends. 72% of Hungarian employees say they would like to move to another country, followed by Romanians (28%), Czechs (26%) and Greeks (10%).

About 80% of Romanian employees who want to move think to do so for better salaries.

Romanians would also like to go to another country to have access to a more developed health system (78%), followed by a better education system (70%). Hungarians, the citizens who are the most eager to leave their country, want to take this step for better opportunities and medical services – both of which account for 63% of the vote. The Czechs would move especially for a better quality of life, and the Greeks for higher wages.

More details about how companies and employees manage this crisis can be found by downloading the report from the Undelucram.ro website.

companiesfearfulHRpsychologistspsychotherapistRomanian employeesstressedSurveyUndelucram.ro
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