Working Conditions and Insurance for Rural Workers in Albania: Challenges and Opportunities
摘要
Focusing particularly on the agriculture sector, this study looks at the working conditions and social insurance benefits of rural workers in Albania. The study also highlights the difficulties encountered by workers in rural areas such as high levels of informal employment, low wages, lack of access to pension schemes, and limited opportunities for skills development. According to survey results from 227 respondents, 79.6% of agricultural workers are employed informally, with no official work contracts, restricting their access to social benefits like pensions and job security. Even if the current system is difficult to use and poorly understood, employees are nevertheless willing to contribute to pension plans in spite of these issues. The article stresses the need for focused initiatives to enhance rural working conditions, such as formalizing employment, raising knowledge of pension systems, and providing skills training to boost job options. Simplifying pension plans, boosting voluntary contributions, formalizing rural labor, and attending to the particular needs of rural women are some examples of policy solutions. The results suggest that in order to give Albanian rural people long-term financial stability and an enhanced standard of living, more public institutions have to be involved in addressing these issues.