Job openings are available, but salaries are unsatisfactory: the job search landscape in the Kostanay region.
In the Kostanay region, according to official data from the site enbek.kz, there are over 4,500 job vacancies. The number of applicants' resumes exceeds this by 30%, but the salary expectations of specialists are quite different. For certain positions, workers demand salaries that are 50% or more higher than what is offered in the local labor market, reports inbusiness.kz.
In spring 2024, during a survey, employers in the Kostanay region reported a shortage of approximately 6,000 workers. This mainly concerned skilled labor positions.
Requests
Career centers (formerly labor exchanges) acknowledge that applicants' salary expectations are quite high. This is often true for young specialists with minimal work experience. Such candidates frequently ask for salaries above the regional average. According to the national statistics bureau, in the Kostanay region, this average is about 338,000 tenge, based on the latest published data for the third quarter of 2024. The average across Kazakhstan is approximately 390,000 tenge.
Analysis of job vacancies and resumes posted on the "Enbek" website showed that a young driver with seven years of experience wishes to earn over 500,000 tenge. However, the resume indicates that the man has only previously worked officially as a gas-electric welder. An assistant accountant with no work experience is looking for a position with a salary of 300,000 tenge, and is educated as a makeup artist. Meanwhile, an electrician servicing automation seeks to earn 450,000 tenge, having two years of work experience. There are many similar examples.
Comparable job vacancies offer significantly lower salaries. Assistant accountants are offered around 100,000-150,000 tenge, while drivers receive offers in the range of 150,000-200,000 tenge. Only electricians can find suitable positions thanks to large mining enterprises, but only if their qualifications and work experience match the requirements.
A small survey among applicants revealed that people desire to receive "fair compensation for their work." Many are guided by the average monthly salary in Kazakhstan. Some young specialists (aged 27-28) have already worked in large companies or know others with similar experience, which explains their expectations.
Offer
According to the regional employment and social programs administration, in 2024, they helped find permanent jobs for 36,500 people. Approximately half of these individuals are rural residents. It is also important to note that 11% of applicants were employed in subsidized positions. These are participants in projects like "Youth Practice," "Contract of Generations," and others.
"Measures are being taken to organize training for individuals with skills that are not in demand in the labor market, with the aim of subsequent employment. The main specialties for which training has been organized include: tractor driver, cook, seamstress, baker, gas-electric welder, and hairdresser. Of those who completed the training, 91.7% were employed in permanent positions," noted Gulnar Abenova, head of the employment coordination and social programs department.
Career center specialists confirm that a significant portion of applicants consists of individuals with either outdated qualifications or insufficient skills. There are often concerns regarding a lack of experience or approaching retirement age. Highly qualified workers rarely register at the labor exchange; companies tend to poach them from each other. This is not only true for large industrial enterprises. The same situation exists in agriculture, where the place of birth and upbringing still plays a significant role. If a local company is willing to invest in its employees, there are those who are ready to stay and work. This applies broadly to rural areas. For instance, in the Kostanay region, there is the example of the Karasuy district hospital, where a significant portion of the staff are local residents, and the medical team is relatively young.
This is business
Another important aspect of the work is encouraging entrepreneurial initiatives. In 2024, more than 2,600 residents of Kostanay underwent training as part of the "Bastau Business" project. However, grants for implementing their business ideas were awarded to just over 10% of the aspiring entrepreneurs. In total, 287.4 million tenge was distributed in the region through this mechanism. Almost half of the funds went towards service sector ideas, while a third was allocated for developing agricultural projects. Often, this involves creating small livestock farms for raising cattle, small ruminants, or poultry. There have also been quite successful projects for building greenhouses.
In 2025, the region plans to allocate 4 billion tenge to assist residents of the Kostanay region in finding employment or starting their own businesses. This funding is expected to help address the employment issue for at least 42,800 individuals. However, in 2024, the prosecutor's office recorded instances of fictitious employment at the Kostanay career center.