Andorra Business Leaders Endorse Catalan Services Amid Labour Shortages

Business leaders in Andorra endorsed Catalan-language services in key sectors during a roundtable on Saturday, while highlighting recruitment challenges in retail, hospitality, and leisure amid ongoing labour shortages.

The event, titled "Catalan in the Business World," was organised by Cultura Activa in collaboration with the Congress of Catalan Culture. Participants included Maria Creus, board member of the Andorran Family Business Association (EFA) and granddaughter of former head of government Òscar Ribas Reig; CEA manager Iago Andreu (via video link); economists Laura Llusà and Ferran Piqué from Catalonia; UNNIC leisure centre HR manager Marina Llompart; Congress director Esteve Plantada; and Cultura Activa president Maria Cucurull.

Creus stressed the need to integrate Catalan into business dealings and client interactions to keep the language alive. She noted differences between firm types: asset management companies can select from wider Catalan-speaking pools, while retail, restaurants, and hotels hire available staff and invest in their training. EFA members, established when Catalan was the daily language, view it as core to identity, fostering client trust and loyalty. She recalled her grandfather's 1993 UN address in Catalan as a bold statement of conviction.

Andreu called for "realism and pragmatism" in enforcing the Official Language Law, given shortages and workers' integration needs. The CEA provides associates with resources to boost staff proficiency, noting broad recognition of the law's importance.

Experts positioned the law—approaching its second anniversary—as a tool for competitiveness. Llusà deemed it "completely indispensable," comparing it to English in England or French in France, and expected Catalan service as a consumer right. She urged institutions to monitor compliance through inspections and fines, especially amid housing shortages and low wages in Andorra and Barcelona. Professionals should build multilingual skills, including Catalan, for local and cross-border opportunities. "A language grows richer with more speakers—it's your identity," she said.

Piqué, head of Catalonia's College of Economists Young Commission, hailed Andorra's approach amid the Catalan language's "emergency." Businesses have a duty to grow speakers for cultural and economic benefits, countering global funds that weaken local roots. He praised locally rooted firms like UNNIC and stressed legislative guidance.

Llompart detailed UNNIC's initiatives: training, guides, cultural incentives, and Catalan meetings where possible to comfort Andorran and Catalan clients while aiding integration. She advocated earlier institutional reminders on residence renewal language requirements. "It's not about forcing Catalan, but explaining why public-facing service needs it," she said, positioning UNNIC as a model for local enterprises.

Cucurull pointed to gaps in shops, banks, and firms, pushing for shared responsibility. Catalan enhances competitiveness; youth handle global languages abroad, but Andorra "beats in Catalan," she noted, warning against its marginalisation.

Plantada connected cultural and business realms in Andorra's context, thanking Cultura Activa. The event forms part of the Congress's three-year language sensitisation campaign.