The Fiji Employers and Commerce Federation claims that close to 20,000 workers have left our shores.

Outgoing Chief Executive Kameli Batiweti says this has exacerbated the plight of local employers, who are not only recovering from the impact of the pandemic but also struggling to find workers.

Batiweti encourages employers and youth seeking work to attend the National Youth Fair the Ministry of Youth and Sports is organizing leading up to National Youth Day next month.

The outgoing Chief Executive says labour migration is massive and the private sector is in a difficult position.

“We don’t know of that number how many were in employment, in full employment, and how many just came out of the rural area, but one thing we know for a fact is that in the private sector we are losing huge numbers of labour from our workforce.”

Batiweti says this is not the time to point fingers, as this issue is also contributing back to the economy through remittances.

“Let’s look for a solution, and we are grateful to the Ministry of Youth and Sports for coming up with a solution. We all have to work together. We know what the problem is; let’s now work together to find what the solutions are and work the solutions so that they work to everybody’s advantage.”

Director for Youth and Sports, Philip Heneriko says the Ministry believes there are still many job-seeking youth, and that the National Youth Fair may be the solution to their job search.

The Ministry says it is trying to engage as many employers as possible for these upcoming events.