GALANTA, November 25, (WEBNOVINY) – The company Samsung Slovakia will employ further 1,000 people in production of LCD panels over the first months of next year. One of the biggest employers in the country however would welcome improvements in the business environment through changes to the Labor Code and the education system, said Prime Minister Iveta Radicova. She met with representatives of the company management in Galanta on Wednesday. She confirmed that Samsung does not demand for now any additional investment incentives for expansion of its production. The president of the company Jae Hyung Lee specified that new jobs will be formed not only in Galanta but also in its production plant in Voderady. He added that the boosted production will have a synergetic effect also on employment in supplier firms.
The discussion on changes to the Labor Code is currently underway. Radicova said that the talks are not progressing due to tough resistance of the trade unionists. The biggest changes expected from the amended code should be a more flexible labor market and changes to the position of employee councils and trade unions. According to Radicova, employers in Slovakia agree that the Slovak education system does not prepare graduates for practical tasks. She called for such changes to the education system which would enable students to get theoretical knowledge at schools while their practical education should take place in firms, which could prepare students as their future employees.
Samsung has been operating in Slovakia since 2002. The plant in Galanta is its largest European factory manufacturing TV sets, computer monitors and plasma screens. In 2006, the firm kicked off construction of a new factory in Voderady near Trnava to manufacture LCD TV sets. The plant was officially opened in the middle of October 2008. According to data released regularly by the Statistics Office of the Slovak Republic, Samsung Electronics Slovakia is one of the country’s biggest exporters.
SITA
