Almost one million people have left the industrial and agricultural sectors since the fall of the communist regime in what was known as Czechoslovakia in 1989, according to the Czech Statistical Office (CSU).

The closure of a number of enterprises and large scale lay-offs have resulted in a total workforce cut of 550,000 staff in Czech industry. Since the early 1990s the number of Czech farmers has dropped from 630,000 to 200,000. Cuts in the sector are likely to go on despite hefty subsidies from the European Union.

Farmers are frequently unable to cope with cheaper produce from the neighbouring countries, Poland in particular, especially in the grain industry and in potato growing, according to the economist David Marek. A Czech farmer’s wage is on average almost a third less than the country’s average wage and has only grown to Kc12.000 ($522) in 2003 from Kc5.100 in 1993. 2004 has, however, given farmers reason to celebrate as the Czech Republic, as the new member of the EU, recorded an agricultural income rise of more than 108%.

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