Salmon farming firm short of staff during lockdown

An increased demand for ready-to-eat salmon products during the corona crisis means that salmon farming company Bakkafrost needs 20-30 more workers at its production facilities in Glyvrar, Eysturoy.

And, according to Bakkafrost CEO Regin Jacobsen, it’s not easy to fill these positions.

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“It’s as if the Coronavirus Supplement Payment scheme has wiped away the flexibility of the job market by actively withdrawing workers from the job market,” he says.

The Coronavirus Supplement Payment scheme was a key component of the government’s first corona rescue package, expanding the unemployment benefit services (ALS) to also include employees and self-employed workers suffering as a result of the corona lockdown.

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“This is a strange situation,” says Jacobsen. “While some 4,000 people have been sent home from their work because of the corona crisis, we are struggling to find new staff.”

He adds that the company is also looking for staff elsewhere in the country, but the vacancies at the Glyvrar production facilities are the most urgent.

Translated by prosa.fo