6 days Ago
“The gaps in human resources are glaring and we don’t see how this can have an immediate useful effect,” Rosa Ribeiro, secretary general of the STC, told Lusa. Today, “consular posts continue to struggle with the same gaps in terms of human resources and recent hires have not yet started” working in the field, she said, referring to the hiring of 50 new technicians announced by the Government. “[The immigrant recruitment process] talks about deadlines of 20 or ten days [to guarantee appointments] and it seems to us, at the moment, a bit difficult to guarantee”, said the union leader, highlighting that delays already exist at the consular services headquarters.
“The General Directorate of Consular Affairs will also have additional work because it will have to receive the documentation, assess the documentation, see if it is complete and that is just the first phase,” she highlighted. “On paper it makes sense”, but “reality will not allow things to happen that way”. “We are sailing in the dark,” she added.
Consular services are committed to responding to requests for work visas within 20 days, within the scope of the “Via Verde” for the hiring of immigrants by Portuguese companies, in accordance with the protocol signed with the main employers’ associations. This measure allows direct hiring abroad by companies after the end of expressions of interest (a legal resource that allowed regularisation in national territory for those arriving with a tourist visa) was decreed by the government last summer. The signatories of the protocol recognise that “labour immigration plays a fundamental role in the economic development of Portugal” and that, “over the years, immigrants have contributed significantly to various sectors of the Portuguese economy, bringing with them a variety of skills, experiences and knowledge that enrich the labour market and drive the country's growth”.
The document recognises that “a significant portion of the workforce in specific sectors, such as agriculture, fishing, construction, tourism and services or industry, comes from abroad, and foreign citizens represent, in this regard, an invaluable contribution to these economic areas, filling gaps in the labour market and ensuring the continuity of operations in various economic activities.” Companies request to schedule visa applications, gathering all necessary documentation, “signing the necessary term of responsibility for the worker(s)”, according to the protocol that comes into effect today..
