– The situation is now quite uncertain – NRK Norway – Summary of news from different parts of the country

– There is a lot of uncertainty now with everything that happens due to the coronavirus. You are unsure of your job, whether you can keep it or not.

Mohamed Shabir is one of the 12,000 “specialists” who have been granted residency in Norway because he has the skills we need. The engineer has worked for an oil and gas company for the past three years and has settled in Bergen with his wife and one-and-a-half-year-old son.

You pay taxes and fees in Norway, but if you are fired, you don’t have the same rights that many of the other hundreds of thousands of workers in the country are or have been out of work during the crown pandemic.

For skilled workers from countries outside the EEA area who are in Norway on a specialist visa, they are locked into a specific profession or employer through the residence permit. Since they cannot accept other jobs, Nav also does not consider them “real job seekers.” So they are not entitled to unemployment benefits.

– I came here as an engineer and I can only work as an engineer or in that kind of role. He couldn’t have worked in a store if he wanted to, says Mohamed.

Changed the rules in May

Several other NRK skilled workers have spoken to discuss similar challenges. In April, NRK spoke with Argentine María Florencia Becherini, who feared layoffs from her job in the cruise industry.

In May, the government adopted a temporary change in regulations that allowed skilled workers from countries outside the EEA area to receive unemployment benefits in the event of dismissal. On November 1, the plan was suspended.

– These employees are here in Norway because there is a need for their work. If there is no longer a need, they should not be here either, says the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Vegard Einan (H).

Einan explains that Norwegian employers will be hiring mainly from the Norwegian, Nordic and European labor markets. For special needs, skilled labor can be obtained from countries outside the EEA.

– We were clear that we introduced a temporary exemption plan in October. Everything has been aware that it is turned off. We have evaluated it and we are not going ahead with the plan, says Einan.

The UDI has no figures on how many of the more than 12,000 skilled workers have stayed and worked in Norway during the corona pandemic.

Nav claims that it received 150 applications for unemployment benefits from qualified third-country nationals from March to October this year. The request was granted to 131 people, while the request was rejected to 19 people.

– I have no problem understanding the uncertainty and fear of the individual for the future, and there are many who share it now, with almost 200,000 unemployed in Norway, says Einan.

He believes that one should seek long-term solutions.

Norway’s largest organization for engineers and technologists, NITO, has received several inquiries from members who discover that they are not entitled to unemployment benefits. NITO believes that both employer and employee end up “desperate” with current regulations.

– The employer needs the competence in which he may have spent great resources in acquiring. The employee has often invested a lot both personally and financially to move. The layoffs are temporary, but without income, it quickly becomes impossible to stay in Norway, says lawyer Kirsten Rydne from NRK.

Anna-Sofie Ekendahl-Dreyer, Caritas Norway’s work director in the field of labor immigration, says the organization received several inquiries from skilled workers this spring. In recent months, they have received less. This may indicate that fewer people are struggling financially or that employees have become better acquainted with the regulations.

Understand that the authorities must prioritize.

– But at the same time we must not forget those who really need it. If there are some professionals who need financial compensation in the event of loss of income, I also believe that they should make sure they get it. This is an extraordinary situation, and one should look for a little longer-term solutions.

– We will be happy to contribute more

Mohamed says he came close to being fired a while ago. After explaining the situation to their employer, they showed goodwill.

– I explained that I will not be able to get money from Nav if I lose my job, and that this puts my family and me in a difficult situation. I was lucky and glad that the company understood the situation I was in and supported me in it.

His wish is that the authorities reconsider the regulation.

– I want the authorities to know that we come here and contribute to the system, and what we want is for them to support us when there is a real need. Let them be understanding, let them know that we are on our feet as soon as the situation changes, and that we are happy to contribute more, says Mohamed.