11.04.2022
WHERE THEY ARE LOOKING FOR NEW EMPLOYEES
Twice as many companies in Bulgaria plan to hire people compared to the previous six months, according to a study by the Bulgarian Employment Confederation, which unites the leading companies in the field of HR services in the country.
A total of 1,074 companies from five regions and twelve industrial sectors participated in the survey. 6% predict a reduction in the workforce, and 33% will keep the number of staff. Thus, the net employment rate, which is obtained from the difference between employers who plan to reduce the workforce and those who forecast to increase it, is +40% - an increase of 23% compared to October 2021 - March 2022.
In Sofia, the demand for new employees will again be most active, with 78% of surveyed employers planning to increase staff. The employment rate in Plovdiv decreased by 10 percentage points and 8% of companies forecast growth in the workforce. In the regions of Burgas and Varna, the employment plans are also positive with employment rates of +5% and +6%, respectively, while the Ruse region improved by seven percentage points, reaching an employment rate of + 3% for the period April - September 2022.
"Despite the encouraging plans of employers across the country to increase staff, there is no sector that is not suffocated by the lack of suitable staff, and this phenomenon is not from yesterday. The labor market has never been so fiercely competitive, because quality employees are not only looking for adequate pay, meaningful additional benefits and flexible work models, but also a stable company culture that goes hand in hand with the priorities of employees and the whole society,” said Nadia Vasileva, chairwoman of the confederation.
To the additional question "How will the war in Ukraine affect your business in the next six months?" 42% of employers say it will have a negative impact, 19% will have a positive impact, and 39% do not think it will affect their business in any way.
"We urgently need more than 200,000 specialists for all sectors without exception, and many employers are hoping to find a solution to their staffing problems in Ukrainian immigrants, who could fill some of the vacancies. Given all the measures the government has taken so far to support refugees, it would be useful to share up-to-date information on the number of Ukrainian citizens actually employed in the last month so that employers can assess whether they are part of the solution to the problem of the huge shortage of staff."
In addition, employers from all twelve industries included in the survey share positive prospects for hiring new employees.
The most optimistic plans for the next six months are the employers from the sectors "Information Technology", "Production" and "Outsourcing" (respectively +49%, +34% and +31%), followed by the "Public and Social" sector and "Finance" , insurance, real estate and business services ”(+7%) and“ Wholesale and retail trade ”and“ Transport, warehouses and communications ”(+5%). The sectors "Mining and quarrying", "Hotels and restaurants" and "Agriculture, forestry and fisheries", whose results were negative for the past six months, will also offer job opportunities with employment rates of +2%, +4% and +2%.
