In an increasingly digitized job market, cyber security is no longer a domain reserved exclusively for IT experts, but is becoming a safety net for job seekers. Authorities and non-governmental organizations have launched digital literacy programs tailored even for people with minimal education, transforming online data protection from an educational barrier into a real chance for professional reintegration for thousands of unemployed.
The number of people looking for a job continues to increase PHOTO: archive/A.Mitran
The year began in Olt county with approximately 8,000 unemployed people in the records of the public employment service, 1,000 more than a year before. In 2025, the County Agency for Employment and Job Training assisted over 10,800 people in their records, in the same time period managing to employ 3,603 people.
The unemployed with the greatest chances of employment remain those with high school and post-high school education, out of the total of 3,603 employed through AJOFM, they are 1,598. And those without education or with at most a secondary school diploma found a place on the labor market, 918 such unemployed people being employed, even more than those with vocational education (which were 918). Also, 266 unemployed people with higher education (which are also the least among the total unemployed) managed to find a job in 2025 through the public service.
The bad news, however, is that the unemployment rate continues to rise, reaching 6.19% in December 2025 (up from 6.08 in November 2025 and 5.37 in December 2024). The unemployed with secondary school education are the most numerous – 42.69%, followed by those without education or with at most primary school – 19.34%. Of the total of 8,000 unemployed, only 17.66% graduated from high school, while post-secondary graduates and those with completed college education represent only 3.4%, clear indications that school gives you a much better chance of employment.
Even more worrying is the structure of unemployment by age segments, with those over 55 being the most numerous – approximately 25% of the total (1,973), followed by people between 50 and 55 – 1,646.
What training courses does the public employment service offer
For the month of January 2026, AJOFM Olt announced, in December 2025, the organization of a single professional training course, for 14 people looking for a job, in the trade of commercial worker. It should be noted that these courses are free for the unemployed, regardless of whether they are indemnified or not, and the counselor who carries out the professional guidance can make the recommendation for one course or another.
Three courses have been announced for February, organized for a total of 42 people, 28 for the commercial worker occupation and a further 14 places for digital skills.
Four courses are announced for the month of March, as follows: commercial worker – 14 people; manicurist – 14 people; digital competence – including Internet safety and cyber security – 14 people; data entry, validation and processing operator – 14 people. If for courses such as commercial worker, manicurist or data entry validation and processing operator there are higher educational requirements, the digital skills course (including Internet safety and cyber security) is also accessible to those with a high school diploma or even lower.
The goal, say the representatives of the public employment service, is that even those who have only graduated from general school are taught, as much as their level of understanding allows, to avoid online fraud, to be able to access certain information on the phone, to be able to fill out an online form, to recognize certain false information, etc.
For certain courses, the law does not even impose a minimum level of education, but by authorizing the course certain conditions are established. “We tried to leave it as low as possible”also say the representatives of the public employment service, this is also because a permanent decrease in the level of training is observed, at least in the case of the bulk of the unemployed who remain, and for this reason, in the category of hard-to-employ people.
If in order to benefit from such a course a minimum level of training is required, there is no maximum one, so if there are unemployed people with higher education who want to follow it, they can also sign up, remaining in charge of the AJOFM advisers to manage the organization of the groups so that the information is taught according to levels of understanding.
In addition to the rather few places available in the training courses organized through the public service, the unemployed also have the opportunity to opt for various courses organized, also free of charge, by other structures that carry out training programs. Even more, through various European projects accessed, students are also offered certain allowances, depending on attendance at the course, provided they graduate.
The job offer is a click away
The list of jobs available through the public employment service (employers are obliged to announce them) is permanently available on the ANOFM website. The list is updated directly by employers, and those interested can apply various filters, choosing only the positions that interest them.
The list can be displayed by: occupation, field of activity, county, work regime (at the office; at home; telework; hybrid), type of contract (indefinite duration; fixed period), salary, type of work schedule (full-time or part-time), etc.
On Monday, February 23, 2026, 8,647 job vacancies were displayed on the ANOFM website, of which only 101 were in Olt county.
