The labour market in Central Eastern Europe is continuing to tighten despite a worldwide economic slowdown, with unemployment below 4% in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland and 5.7% in Slovakia.

Tight labour market conditions are hurting labour intensive industries, like construction and retail, while manufacturers are turning to automation and even deals with prisons to address worker shortages. According to Eurostat, 92,3% of Hungarian industrial groups, 48,1% of Polish, and 25% of Czech...