Hiring seasonal workers via mobile app
NALED and Tax Administration have developed an application for hiring seasonal workers in agriculture via smartphones. Employment via mobile apps enabled for the first time in Serbia - with the first fully operational mobile app for a public administration service.
The application was developed within the project „Increasing employment opportunities for seasonal workers“ implemented by NALED with the suppot of German Development Cooperation - GIZ Open Regional Fund for Modernization of Municipal Services. Along with the web portal www.sezonskiradnici.gov.rs, employers will now have another efficient tool for registering seasonal workers, while the workers will be able to check whether they have been registered by using their mobile phone.
- The mobile application will make the simplified procedure for hiring seasonal workers even more user-friendly, as research shows that two thirds of users rather use mobile phones than web portals, finding them more suitable, while three out of four browse internet content via phone. For this reason, we expect the application „Seasonal workers“ to generate increased number of employers who will legally hire people to assist them in agricultural works in several simple clicks - by entering the personal identification number, the dates of engagement and selecting the type of work to be performed. During the first three months of implementation, the simplified procedure has already been used by 70 employers - said the President of NALED's Food and Agriculture Alliance and the Director of Atlantic Group in Serbia Vladimir Čupić.
The data from the electronic system show that, starting from January this year, there have been 2,987 seasonal workers engaged in agriculture who were registered and hence have the right to pension and insurance in case of occupational injuries. Taxes amounting to 4.2 million RSd have been paid for their engagement, along with 12 million RSD in social contributions.
Seasonal workers have so far been hired in 95 cities and municipalities all across Serbia, mostly in Vojvodina. Due to the seasonal character of work, they were most commonly hired for trimming branches, as well as the works regarding the cleaning, sorting, packing and storing agricultural products. Among 70 employers, it is interesting to see that 17 were individuals.
Both the employers and the seasonal workers may ask for help in using the application and the portal by contacting service centers that have been formed in 83 local governments so far. Their establishment and the training of employees is performed by NALED within the same project. n March only, there were 30 trainings attended by 604 employees in local governments and employers, while new trainings are planned up until all of the planned service centers are established.
The mobile application „Seasonal workers“ is available for download from Google Play Store at the link from 1 April, and it will soon be available to phones with IOS operating systems as well.