According to the Migration Department, positive migration has been recorded in Lithuania for three years in a row - Lithuanians increasingly decide to return to their homeland, rather than leave it. HR departments of Lithuanian companies are starting to feel this too - they are receiving more and more resumes from former emigrants. According to labor market experts, at the moment there are extremely favorable conditions for compatriots to return to their homeland, in addition, elderly candidates abroad often have more colorful knowledge, experience and skills, which is why such employees are welcomed and valued in companies.
One-room apartment for rent in San Francisco - 2 thousand dollars
Laura Karaliūtė, who works as a sales project manager at Kitron, a Kaunas electronics manufacturing company, also contributed to last year's positive migration statistics.
Laura spent more than twenty years in the "land of dreams" - the United States of America. Having gone to JAV, Laura graduated from the University of San Francisco with a BA in International Business and Management. By the way, Laura's university diploma has the signature of the then governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Although she lived in the so-called country of dreams, the USA, for more than twenty years, this did not stop Laura from turning her destiny 180 degrees in just one month: she bought a one-way plane ticket, said goodbye to her then employers and friends, and returned home to her native Lithuania forever.
"Returning to Lithuania is much easier than going to another country, where you will always be a foreigner: no matter how well you speak the local language, you will always be asked where you are from. I realized that home is where family is, and I missed it a lot - especially in the first year, at Christmas. I remember calling my parents and seeing how the whole family was celebrating at the table, and I was sitting alone in America. It was very sad, I cried. This longing did not fade throughout the twenties of living in the United States," says Laura.
Although longing for the homeland constantly encouraged Laura's thoughts about returning, the lack of warmth from family, friends and relatives was not the only reason for such a decision. She was also motivated to exchange the skyscrapers of San Francisco for the forests of Lithuania by realizing that a higher salary is not always a reflection of a quality life.
"Renting a one-room apartment in San Francisco costs about 2 thousand per month. US dollars, therefore, they have more to earn, so the relatively higher salary is actually not that high. Meanwhile, Lithuania has changed a lot, has become incomparably more beautiful, and there are certainly all the opportunities to secure good living conditions. The salary is also adequate: there is not even the thought that I "can't afford" something - you can afford to travel and buy something nice", smiles L. Karaliūtė.
By the way, according to Numbeo, one of the largest data analysis portals, Lithuania's quality of life index is 15 percent. higher than San Francisco: living in Lithuania is safer, cheaper and cleaner.
Lithuania has already caught up with Southern European countries in terms of salaries
Vytautas the Great University (VDU) scientists conducted a study five years ago, during which the main causes of Lithuanian migration were examined. The study confirmed the assumptions that Lithuanians are mostly driven by economic reasons to go abroad.
However, in the last five years, many significant changes have taken place in the Lithuanian labor market: the minimum monthly wage has doubled, the average monthly NET wage has increased by almost 500 euros, and in some sectors, even larger wage jumps have been recorded for specialists in certain fields, for example, working in electronics engineering or in information technology companies.
Labor market expert Andrius Francas, partner of Alliance for Recruitment, also notices this trend. According to him, the salary differences of some specialists in Lithuania and the West are no longer so obvious, so it no longer makes sense to continue a career abroad. In addition, according to A. Franco, in recent years, Lithuania has already caught up with Southern European countries in terms of salaries.
"As for the workers, the differences in their wages are still quite large. For example, in Scandinavian countries or the United Kingdom, the salary is sometimes 2-3 times higher compared to what they would earn in Lithuania. However, the salary difference for specialists in engineering, IT and other fields is no longer that big, we are talking about only 20-30 percent. the difference. We are already catching up with Southern Europe and in certain areas we have even equaled the salaries of Spain, Portugal, and Greece," A. Francas assures.
According to him, at the moment there are very favorable conditions for compatriots to return to Lithuania: elderly candidates abroad have a more colorful baggage of knowledge, experience and skills, so such employees are welcomed and appreciated in our companies.
"In the eyes of the employer, the returned Lithuanian has countless advantages: he does not need to be taught either the language or the culture. He brings a wide range of knowledge, experience of working in an international and intercultural environment. In addition, a person who has lived abroad speaks the language used in that country very well, which is also a big advantage", said A. Francas about the value of workers who have returned from emigration.
The adaptation period lasted half a year
"It was funny to say that I still really dream about San Francisco - I really do, but sometimes such nightmares," jokes Laura, who without regret exchanged the United States for a quiet life close to her family. Beautiful and a career in a Scandinavian company based here.
Leaving the country where you spent almost half of your life is quite a challenge. It took our interlocutor half a year to overcome him. However, during the adaptation period, Laura was strongly supported by her family and friends, and the motivation to create a life in Lithuania was inspired by a new job offer.
Laura, who got a job at Kitron, an electronics manufacturing company, says that the world of electronics was foreign to her, but very interesting, so she was ready to learn. After making efforts and deepening her knowledge, today Laura works in a job she likes and appreciates, but now in Lithuania.
"Since we work with many foreigners, working in Lithuania reminds me a bit of San Francisco. We interact with people of different nationalities: Norwegian, German, Chinese, American, so I can apply the skills I learned in the US perfectly in this company. In addition, the wonderful people who work here gave me a very warm welcome. It's fun to work, because the team is very friendly: everyone is ready to answer, help, and sometimes laugh at my half-English, half-Lithuanian expressions," says L. Karaliūtė.
Even the fjords of Norway do not compare to the plains of Lithuania
Extending your career in Lithuania, even if you have returned from a long-term emigration, is definitely possible. Not only Laura, but also her colleague, head of the automation group Dalius Leonavičius, proves this in her story. A man who spent five years in Norway confirms: the income received abroad was minimally higher, but so was the cost of living.
"There is a difference, but it is not so big and uncomfortable that you can say that you earn very little in Lithuania, and five times more there. All in all, the comfort of life in Lithuania is greater, because you live in your own country, within your own borders.
This is the thinking of a young, naive person, when you imagine that everywhere else will be better. You travel, see the world and see that the same Lithuania has really good living conditions. In fact, even with my family, we saw more opportunities in Lithuania than in Norway: there you have to do ten times more to prove your worth", says D. Leonavičius, recalling the life of an emigrant.
According to Dalius, who chose the profession of an engineer, it was important for him that his workplace met his value needs.
"Since I worked with Scandinavians and saw their work culture, I really wanted to work under similar conditions when I returned to Lithuania. I deliberately looked for a company with Norwegian capital where I could do engineering work. This is where the environment for creative engineering work was created for me: now I go to work as a hobby", says D. Leonavičius.
