The acute shortage of professional drivers is rapidly changing the road transport map in Europe, and Romania is increasingly at the heart of this transformation. By the year 2026, 900 more Asian truck drivers are expected to arrive on the local market in direct response to the severe shortage of personnel in this strategic sector.
The growing interest of Asian drivers in Romania, coupled with policies to open up to non-EU labor force, strengthens the country's position as a reference destination for international road transport.
The recruitments are being carried out by Work from Asia, which last year signed a special agreement with the Philippine government to bring 3,000 truck drivers to Romania, one of the largest partnerships of its kind to date. For 2026, the company is announcing to expand recruitment to more Asian countries, with a total target of 900 drivers.
Brought from the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka and Nepal
"For the new year, we are expanding our recruitment of TIR drivers to other countries in Asia. Besides the Philippines, we will also be recruiting from Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka and Nepal", Yosef Gavriel Peisakh, General Manager Work from Asia, told "Adevărul".
TIR drivers brought in from countries outside the EU are paid between €850 and €1,500, while the average EU salary for TIR drivers is between €2,300 and €2,500, writes adevărul.ro.
According to the recruitment specialist, experience with Filipino drivers recruited so far confirms the effectiveness of this model. "Filipino drivers have integrated perfectly. Most of them are already on international assignments in the European Union, they self-recommend themselves to colleagues and we have more and more applicants", said Yosef Gavriel Gavriel Peisakh, adding that by 2026, he aimed to place 600 Filipino drivers and 300 drivers from other Asian countries.
