A staggering 91 percent out of 178,000 Croatians who found jobs in companies or institutions throughout 2017 did so by signing fixed term contracts. In addition, although state employment bureau currently advertises for 26,000 vacancies, only 2,000 of them are offering open-ended contracts.

According to data compiled by Eurostat, Croatia is one of the leading European countries in precarious work – the type of work arrangement which is insecure and unprotected, and in Croatia, this most commonly takes the form of a three-month contract, Vecernji List daily reported on Monday.

In 2016, more than 8 percent of all employed, or about 120,000 workers, worked on a three-month contract, and with workers 34 years of age or younger, the share was 15 percent. By comparison, in most other EU countries the share of precarious workers in the general population ranges from 0.3 to 2 percent, and is usually used during periods of increased business activity.

Apart from the sheer number of people employed on fixed-term contracts, Croatia also stands out by the share of precarious workers in total employment figures, with 22 percent of all employed in 2016, or 330,000 people, putting it behind Poland and Spain only in the share of precarious workers, Vecernji List reported.