RURAL EMPLOYMENT IN THE CONTEXT OF ROMANIAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

This paper presents the main characteristics of the rural labour market, both at national level and at the level ofthe eight development regions of Romania, focusing especially on the qualitative aspects of employment. The objectivesof our paper are to emphasize the fact that the labour resource in the Romanian rural area is and has to acknowledgeitself as a key resource of sustainable development, under the circumstances in which in Romania 45.1% of the populationlives in the rural area. Moreover, the paper underlines the implications of the regions’ degree of ruralisation onemployment and economic development.The results of the statistical-economic analysis, which was carried out based on the data at national level as wellas the level of the development regions in Romania, show that rural labour market is characterized by: employmentpredominantly in agricultural activities, high share of self- employed and contributing family worker, low level ofeducation, the basic occupation - farmers and skilled workers in agriculture, low productivity, etc.We consider that in order to achieve rural regional development in Romania it is necessary to increase the qualityof employment in the rural area.

Keywords

• rural development
• labour market
• employment
• agriculture
• development regions