Every day a position stays unfilled, you lose revenue, pay overtime and put extra load on the rest of the team, and most employers never put a number on that cost. Below are the numbers, sector benchmarks and a calculator that shows your loss in 30 seconds.
Cost of vacancy is the total economic damage to a company from a position being unfilled. It includes lost revenue, overtime for existing workers, contractual penalties, lost customers and lower morale in the team.
Key numbers on the cost of vacancy in 2026
- Croatia 2026: a shortage of about 65,000 seasonal workers in tourism and construction (estimate by the Croatian Tourism Association and HGK for 2026).
- EU vacancy rate in Q2 2025: 2.1% of all EU jobs are vacant (Eurostat, 2026).
- Average daily revenue loss per vacant position, by sector:
- Construction: €450–700 per day
- Hospitality (seasonal peak): €600–1,200 per day
- Manufacturing (CNC, metalworking): €800–1,500 per day
- Transport (C+E driver): €350–550 per day
- Healthcare and care: €300–500 per day
- 30 days of an empty position cost the company between €9,000 (lighter position) and €45,000 (highly productive) on average.
- Companies that have digitised their HR process work with 4% higher productivity than those that haven't (European Commission, Spring 2026).
1. Five cost components that 90% of employers don't calculate
Most small and medium employers in the EU see a vacant position as a saving, because they are not paying a salary. That calculation leaves out the five costs below.
1.1. Lost direct revenue
This is the most visible component. If one bricklayer builds €35,000 worth of work a month, losing him means losing that €35,000. The simplest baseline is revenue per employee.
1.2. Overtime for existing workers
The work does not disappear, so the rest of the team takes it over. Existing workers cover about 30% of the gap, but at 1.5× the hourly rate (Croatian Labour Law, Art. 65, similar in most EU jurisdictions). The cost also grows faster than the hours, because overtime productivity declines over time.
1.3. Burnout and attrition of remaining staff
A Gallup 2024 study on team capacity erosion found that when a team works above 110% capacity for more than 6 weeks, the risk of additional resignations rises by 38%. That is how one empty position becomes two or three.
1.4. Cancelled or delayed projects
In construction, 75% of projects are delayed, and 61% of firms name worker shortage as the direct cause (McKinsey/ECI 2025 Construction Productivity Study). Late penalties typically run 0.5–1% of project value per day, so a €500,000 project carries an extra €2,500–5,000 in daily cost.
1.5. Hidden "manager tax"
Managers spend time patching schedules, running interviews that don't lead to hires and reposting job ads. By the SHRM 2025 benchmark, an average HR manager spends 15–22 hours a month on each unfilled position. At a manager's hourly cost of €35, that is €525–770 a month on coordination alone.
2. How much does a vacant position cost you? Try the calculator
The calculator below gives a conservative estimate by sector, number of positions and days. Sources: Eurostat hourly labour costs EU 2025 (€34.9 average), SHRM 2025 cost-per-hire benchmarks and sectoral revenue-per-employee studies.
What does a vacant position cost you?
Select industry, number of unfilled positions and how long they've been open. The calculator returns a conservative estimate based on Eurostat and SHRM 2025 benchmarks.
Cost breakdown
- Lost revenue (capacity gap)
- €17,250
- Overtime for existing staff (×1.5)
- €1,620
- Burnout / morale decline (conservative 8%)
- €1,510
Pre-screened candidates ready to arrive. People Pons delivers qualified candidates within days of signing.
Numbers are indicative. Actual loss depends on margin, seasonality and position criticality.
The calculator uses a conservative midpoint of the range. The actual loss is typically larger for high-margin firms and in peak season, and smaller for low-margin firms or for continuous production without bottleneck positions.
3. Croatian sector benchmarks 2026
The table uses data on the Croatian labour market for 2026 (Ministry of the Interior, HZZ, HGK, HUT and Eurostat seasonal reports):
| Sector | Typical monthly salary (gross) | Daily loss per empty position | Average time to fill* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction (bricklayer, carpenter) | €1,400–2,000 | €450–700 | 38–67 days |
| Hospitality (waiter, seasonal) | €1,200–1,800 | €600–1,200 | 21–45 days |
| Manufacturing (CNC operator) | €1,800–2,600 | €800–1,500 | 52–90 days |
| Transport (C+E driver) | €1,500–2,200 | €350–550 | 28–55 days |
| Healthcare (caregiver) | €1,300–1,900 | €300–500 | 35–60 days |
| Agriculture (seasonal) | €900–1,400 | €200–400 | 14–30 days |
*Time to fill is measured from the end of the recruitment process (contract signing) to the worker's arrival at the position. It includes work permits, OIB and accommodation. Without an agency this often takes 2–3 months. A specialised agency with a regional network can deliver a first qualified candidate within 15 working days of signing the order. The rest is an administrative process the agency does not control: the employer submits the work permit application to the Ministry of the Interior, and visas follow.
4. AI era: why slow hiring today means losing the market tomorrow
According to the European Commission (Spring 2026), 91% of workers who use AI at work say it helps them work faster. Companies that have adopted AI or automation in operational processes have 4% higher productivity than those that haven't, and in functions like customer support the difference reaches 15% (Brookings, 2025).
Suppose you search for a worker the traditional way for 67 days, while a competitor with an optimised HR process (specialised agency, regional network, clear internal procedure) gets a first qualified candidate within 15 working days of signing the order. The difference of about 50 days × €800 daily loss in manufacturing gives the competitor a €40,000 advantage. If this repeats 3–4 times a year, the structural loss passes €150,000. You won't see that cost in your accounts, but it will show in next year's market share.
5. Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
How long does it take on average to fill one position in Croatia 2026?
According to HZZ and SHRM benchmarks, hiring a worker from abroad takes 45–90 days on average, from the start of the process to the worker's arrival. A specialised agency with a regional network can deliver a first qualified candidate within 15 working days of signing the order. The rest is the administrative process (work permit, visas), which depends on the employer and the Ministry of the Interior.
How much does a bad hire cost when someone is hired incorrectly?
SHRM 2025 estimates between 50% and 200% of annual salary, depending on seniority. For a bricklayer with an annual salary of €18,000, errors, dismissal and repeated hiring cost €9,000–36,000. More on this in the article "Cost of a bad hire".
Which season has the largest daily loss?
July and August for hospitality (up to €1,500 a day per empty position), April to June for construction (delay penalties) and September to October for manufacturing (Q4 production push). Seasonal peaks raise the default numbers from the calculator by 2–3×.
Is it cheaper to leave the position vacant or use an agency?
On conservative math, 30 days of a vacant position in construction cost about €17,000. A specialised agency's commission for one position typically amounts to 1.5–3 monthly salaries (€2,000–6,000). Compared with waiting, the agency pays for itself by the third week.
What is the People Pons replacement guarantee?
If the candidate leaves the employer or doesn't match the specification within 60 days of their first working day, People Pons replaces the worker at no additional cost. Details: Worker replacement guarantee. The guarantee covers every reason on the worker's side: not turning up, not being able to do the job, not wanting to work or causing problems.
Related: Cost of a bad hire 2026, Hidden costs of slow hiring in the AI era and Worker replacement guarantee 2026.
6. Next step
The number from the calculator is the cheapest part of the cost. What to do next:
- Identify the 3 positions that block your revenue the most. These are the most critical ones, not necessarily the most numerous.
- Calculate your real cost for 60 days, since most positions remain vacant that long.
- Contact a specialised agency with a regional network. People Pons delivers a first qualified candidate within 15 working days of signing the order; the rest of the process depends on how quickly the employer responds and on permits.
- Agree on an SLA with the agency: candidate contact within 48h and clear deadlines for signing.
Sources and notes:
- Eurostat, Hourly labour costs in the EU, 2025
- Eurostat, Job vacancy statistics, Q2 2025
- SHRM, 2025 Talent Access Report (cost-per-hire benchmarks)
- European Commission, European Economic Forecast, Spring 2026, "The AI-adoption divide"
- World Bank, Croatia Labor Market Review, 2025
- Croatian Ministry of the Interior, Work permit statistics, 2025
- Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK), seasonal worker estimates 2026
- Gallup, State of the Global Workplace, 2024 (burnout & team capacity)
- McKinsey/ECI, Global Construction Productivity Study, 2025
Numbers are indicative and based on publicly available sources and conservative models. Your actual cost depends on company specifics, season and position criticality.
Have a question about your situation? Call +385 91 514 0192 or write to us in the chat or by email (Leo answers in the chat 24/7, and we reply to emails within one to two business days).