Competition on the Romanian labor market and its implications for public policies

In this article, the authors examine the Romanian labor market from a competitive perspective, focusing on the degree of concentration and the manifestations of the market power of employers in the period 2016–2024. Structural indicators such as the employment rate, the unemployment rate, labor productivity, unit labor cost, the number of employees by sector of activity, the distribution of large employers in the territory and the Herfindahl–Hirschman index (HHI), calculated on labor markets delimited by sector and territory, are used. The results indicate a reduction in the degree of concentration at the aggregate level, while there are differences depending on the sector of activity. The labor productivity is found to exeed the unit labor cost, suggesting a possible exercise of market power by employers in conditions of reduced worker mobility. The analysis proposes economic interpretations and public policy directions aimed at correcting negotiation asymmetries, increasing mobility and integrating labor market assessment into the competition toolkit.