Textile magnate Angel Dimitrov, who owns the Moda plant in Sveti Nikole, fired 180 workers today. The workers were summoned one by one and informed that they are surplus, given the low volume of work the factory has secured. The factory has additional 260 workers on furlough, and their fate is also uncertain.

Our partners in Germany are telling us that for some of our products, the lack of demand will persist into 2022. We have a huge decrease in orders, said Dimitrov, who is a former SDSM member of Parliament.

Textile is a key industry in Macedonia’s east, and is hugely important for low skilled workers.