16.10.2023

ARE WOMEN APPOINTED TO MANAGEMENT POSITIONS IN OUR COUNTRY?

One of the signs of a democratic society is whether there is equality between the sexes. The UN has been working in this direction for years, and the Council of Europe even recommended that the share of women in decision-making bodies should be no less than 40%. Bulgaria also promised to work to overcome gender inequality, with a deadline of 2030.

For the first time, the National Statistical Institute collects data on senior and middle-level management positions in all institutions. In the legislative, executive and judicial authorities, as well as in other structures outside them - such as higher education institutions, scientific organizations, public media, public enterprises. The number of positions does not match that of natural persons, as sometimes one person combines several positions.

Out of 22,000 management positions in our country, there are more men - over 63%. The working environment is "most masculine" in public enterprises. The largest number of women are in the judiciary, and true parity between the sexes exists in territorial administrations, scientific organizations and public media.

There are at least 750 people's representatives, chairmen, and vice-chairmen in leadership positions in the legislature. Three quarters are men and one quarter are women. This includes positions in the National Assembly and its administration, as well as in temporary and permanent committees. They are elected from the composition of the National Assembly in order to support its activities and exercise parliamentary control. As a member state of the European Union, Bulgarian MEPs are part of the legislative power.

In the parliament, the gap between men and women is the biggest. Out of 240 deputies, women make up about one fifth. There are so many in the parliamentary committees. And the ratio of men to women in the European Parliament, where 17 people's representatives work, is 12 to 5. This ranks us in 22nd place among the member states, with Sweden and Finland first, whose MEPs are 57% female.

The executive branch abounds in managerial positions. Of nearly 16,000, however, only 5,600 of them are employed by women. We divide the executive power into central and territorial. There are more women in the central office, and the positions they hold are mostly deputy managers, not managers. There are the most women in high positions in the executive agencies, and the least in the ministries. Currently, there are only 4 ministerial seats occupied by women.

Out of over 3,700 mayors in the country - be it municipalities, districts or town halls, the percentage ratio between men and women is about 70 to 30. The same is true of municipal councilors, whose number is approximately 5,100. Blagoevgrad has the most male mayors and municipal councilors, and the majority are women occupying these positions in Gabrovo and Vratsa.

The judiciary can be defined as a woman's kingdom. More than half of the management positions in the system are held by women. Be it in the Supreme Judicial Council, the courts or the prosecutor's office. Of the 1,868 judges last year, for example, two-thirds were women. District courts have the largest number of judges. The highest chance of meeting a female judge is in the Administrative Court - 78%, and the lowest - in the Military Court.

Independent structures include higher schools and learned organizations, state structures, which also include public media and public enterprises. In all of them, the division between the two sexes in management is the most balanced of all the positions listed so far. The only exception is public enterprises, where male managers dominate significantly - with over 72%.

Taking a look at management positions that are not part of state management, we will look for the profile of the working Bulgarian man and, respectively, Bulgarian woman, of active age in a high position.

Among men, the most common position is director, the greatest advantage over women is taken between the ages of 30 and 39. Their share is the largest in construction - 82% of management positions there are held by men, and the populated place where they dominate is Kardzhali.

Women are most often managers, although they share this position equally with the other sex. Between the ages of 20 and 29, there is the largest percentage of engaged ladies, who work mainly in health care and social work - 75% of this field is led by women, and the city most strongly colored in pink turns out to be Pernik.