Central Europe's arms makers scramble for workers as Ukraine boosts business

FILE PHOTO: A worker checks the quality of GROT C16 FB-M1, modular assault rifle system at PGZ (Polska Grupa Zbrojna) arms factory Fabryka Broni Lucznik in Radom Poland, November 7, 2022. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel

PRAGUE/WARSAW (Reuters) - From building apartments for new employees to offering retired workers free canteen meals to share their expertise, Central Europe's arms manufacturers are scrambling for new ways to cope with the biggest boom since the end of the Cold War.

Facing some of the tightest labour markets in Europe, weapons makers in Poland and the Czech Republic are launching or expanding programs to recruit and train new workers after the Ukraine war drove a spike in demand for their productions.