Alprom Pitesti, a major furniture manufacturer on the domestic market, has been hit significantly by the migration of its workforce since the beginning of the year, as over 400 employees left the company to work abroad.
"The furniture industry is coping with the same situation as the constructions industry. Workforce migration has hit us extremely hard and we've had to increase wages by more than 20%," said Dumitru Petcu, Alprom Pitesti general manager.
Some Alprom employees (although only a small number) have found jobs at the new shopping centres in Pitesti, which offer a more relaxed working programme compared with their old jobs at the furniture plant.
Petcu specified he did not intend to bring workers from Eastern countries and that higher wages were the solution.
"We hope most of the people who left will come back. The trend is already visible. So far, we've seen 20-30 people return. However, the number is too small compared with our needs," explained Petcu.
The entire furniture industry has been harmed by workforce migration, in the context where the average wage per branch stands at 220 euros. In line with previous statements made by company officials, the average wage at Alprom stood at 850 RON (241 euros) last year.
"This has had a negative impact on us in the sense that we couldn't reach a sufficient production volume," added Petcu.
The Pitesti-based company belongs, together with another 12 firms, to Alprom group, which deals in timber, semi fabricated products and furniture production, constructions, transportation, and the production and sale of varnish and diluting agents.
Petcu would not reveal the group's turnover for 2007, but said he expected an increase of at least 15% in 2008. "Next year's increase will be sustained by an investment programme estimated at $1m in Q1," added Petcu.
He forecasts the furniture market will increase by 6-7% next year, aided by imports and domestic production. Furniture production is forecast at 1.7bn euros per annum, of which the domestic market draws only 600m euros, whilst the rest goes to other markets.
In recent years, export activities have brought significant losses to furniture companies primarily due to RON decline against the euro. Although foreign currency market conditions have been favourable lately, Petcu believes producers remain unenthusiastic when it comes to exports.
In 2005, exports accounted for 88% of Alprom's entire production, however these weighed 64-66% of the total in early 2007.
"The market will be further bolstered by real estate developments. At present, the most developed market segments are office furniture, followed by kitchen and living room furniture," stated Petcu.
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