Sikkut was likewise critical of foreign investments being preferred to domestic capital, as well as the fact that instead of helping inactive workers in Estonia enter or return to the labor market, the plan calls for a significant increase to the immigration quota instead.

Despite the fact that the "Principles of Estonia's economic policy" had not been sent to the Ministry of Social Affairs for an opinion, there is a robust link between health and workability, and several of the proposals also have long-term impacts on the population and thus on the healthcare system as well, the health minister said in the opening of her letter to Riisalo.

For that reason, she decided to put forward five major recommendations for improving the document as presented by the economic affairs minister.

According to Sikkut, "This is a disturbing and irresponsible document structure that begins with the goal of doubling growth without any sort of limitations or criteria, and in the final subsection reaches [the matter of] accountability."

There is no justification for the goal as presented, she said, as "growth can only come if and when it is less burdensome on the natural environment than our annual GDP growth to date. Thus, growth can come by using renewable energy, reducing the amount of waste, or through a circular economy, increasing the value added of natural resources – otherwise, we're essentially aiming to pollute twice as much as before."

Alongside sticking within natural tolerance limits, Estonia must also ensure a more equitable distribution of growth, meaning reductions in regional, gender, and income inequality, the health minister said.

"What was written also gives the impression that we ourselves don't even want a responsible economy, but are doing it because it's important to our export partners, not to us," she pointed out.

Sikkut was also troubled by the fact that Riisalo and the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications' vision favors foreign investments over domestic capital.

"There is no need to impede foreign investments, but for what reason are we preferring foreign investors to Estonian capital and planning incentives?" she questioned.

"Over the past 32 years, we've built up our own domestic capital, the goal for which should be new investments of local capital in Estonia," she continued. "This is also necessary for balanced regional development, as capital has not just a nationality, but also a parish."

Sikkut further went on to criticize that the Ministry of Economic Affairs believes that concerns with workforce quality should be resolved via Estonia's education system and that the solution to the labor shortage is easing the country's annual immigration quota.

She explained that according to 2022 figures from Statistics Estonia, there were 24,700 inactive jobseekers on the country's labor market, i.e. people who would like to work, but cannot do so, due to caring for a loved one or illness, for example.

As of the end of December 2023, there were also 93,094 people with reduced ability to work, 41 percent of whom are aged 55 or older and nearly 40 percent of whom were deemed to have a reduced ability to work due to "mental and behavioral disorders," including addiction, and another quarter due to musculoskeletal and connective tissue diseases.

"In such circumstances, the first thing that should be done to alleviate the labor shortage is still to work with people who don't contribute to the labor market in Estonia the way or to the extent that they'd like," Sikkut emphasized.

"Hence it is necessary to keep healthy current workers who have already earned a degree and have somewhere to live, prevent [workers] from dropping out of the labor market following illness and support the entry into the labor market of those who want to work," she explained. "There is a huge difference for society whether 25,000 inactive jobseekers start work or the immigration quota is increased to 25,000 for a year."

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!