21.12.2021

RIGHTS IN CASE OF UNUSED, EXPIRING LEAVE

At the end of this year, the statute of limitations for paid leave from 2019 expires, reminded by the Executive Agency "General Labor Inspectorate". All days of paid annual leave may be used until the end of their two-year limitation period, whether or not they are postponed for the following calendar year.

Part of the leave may be postponed to the next calendar year at the request of employees and with the consent of the employer. For important production reasons, the employer could also postpone part of the leave, but he is obliged to ensure the use of at least half of the days in the year to which it relates.

Where the leave is deferred or not used until the end of the calendar year to which it relates, the employer shall be obliged to ensure its use during the first six months of the following calendar year. After this period, the employee can go on leave on his own with 14 days' notice. The employer must inform the workers at the beginning of the year of the days of leave due, including the rest of the previous year.

In case of termination of employment, the employee is entitled to compensation for all days that have not expired, regardless of whether they are transferred or not in the next year. The limitation period for paid annual leave ceases to run if the employee uses another type of leave - for pregnancy and childbirth, child care, etc.

According to the changes in the labor legislation related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the employer has the right to provide half of the paid annual leave during the declared emergency situation, which was extended until March 31, 2022, and without the request of its employees. For this purpose, the activity of the enterprise must be suspended or limited by an order of a state body.

In the conditions of an epidemic situation, the employer has no right to refuse paid leave to certain categories of workers from vulnerable groups. However, he cannot unilaterally grant any type of unpaid leave. The use of such must be requested by the employee.

21.12.2021

670,000 BULGARIANS WILL IMPROVE THEIR DIGITAL SKILLS UNDER MLSP PROGRAMS

About 670,000 Bulgarians will undergo training to improve their digital skills under programs of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy. We plan in the next few years mass trainings for the entire active population in the country. This was stated by the Minister of Labor and Social Policy Georgi Gokov during the closing of the campaign of the Operational Program for Human Resources Development (OPHRD) "Get in the Network", which took place on December 16 at the National Palace of Culture.

The training of 500,000 Bulgarians who have no or almost no digital skills will be funded by the National Recovery and Sustainability Plan. Another 170,000 people will improve their digital skills under OPHRD. "A platform for online training will be built so that every Bulgarian can gain new knowledge," said Minister Gokov.

The Networking campaign is part of the Conference on the Future of Europe and aims to provoke a debate on the topic of digital transformation. The initiative took place in Plovdiv, Ruse, Varna, Stara Zagora, Burgas, Sandanski and Sofia. During the events, more than 2,100 surveys were completed with people's opinions and recommendations for the future of the digital age. The results will be summarized and sent to the European Commission for inclusion in the debate on the future of Europe in the area of ​​digital transformation during the French Presidency in 2022.

The initiative was supported by the hosts of all events of the campaign Katerina Evro and Alexander Kadiev, snowboarder Alexandra Zhekova, conductor Maxim Eshkenazi, journalist Georgi Toshev, producers Ivan Hristov and Andrey Arnaudov, chef Ivan Manchev and poet Maria Doneva. Children from 51 Elisaveta Bagryan High School also took part.

21.12.2021

NEWLY CREATED TOOLS DETERMINE THE NECESSARY DIGITAL SKILLS FOR PROFESSIONS FROM OVER 90 ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES

The newly created toolkit will explore the various professions and positions of over 90 economic activities and will determine the necessary digital skills for them. It is composed of purpose-built methodologies to meet the challenges posed by the rapid development of the labor market and new forms of work.

The toolkit, developed in the implementation of the procedure "Development of digital skills" and funded by the Operational Program "Human Resources Development", will be implemented until 2023 and is crucial, not only because in recent years the requirements for digital knowledge and skills of the workforce, but also because these skills and competencies provide sustainable and quality employment, especially in a pandemic. It comes in response to the digital transformation of the labor market, through which new professions, new forms of teleworking are emerging and existing professions are being transformed.

In the implementation of 7 projects, generalized profiles of digital skills will be developed, which will be useful for employers in hiring staff and training the workforce. There will also be a focus on the development of education and training policies and the taking of more concrete measures to address the mismatch between labor supply and demand.

21.12.2021

RADOSTIN CHOLAKOV FROM THE RHODOPES IS THE YOUNGEST IN THE "TOP 30 UNDER 30" RANKING OF FORBES - BULGARIA

15-year-old Radostin Cholakov from the Rhodopean village of Barutin is the youngest Bulgarian to be included in the prestigious ranking of Forbes - Bulgaria magazine - "Top 30 under 30", we learn from the site epicenter.bg

The tenth-grader from the Plovdiv Mathematical High School creates software that voices textbooks and makes grammatical and syntactic analysis in Bulgarian.

Radostin explained to bTV that the software aims to improve the support of the Bulgarian language on the Internet by providing linguistic tools for language processing.

Artificial intelligence for the Bulgarian language - this is the most prestigious thing at the moment," added the computer science teacher from OMG" Acad. Kiril Popov”- Plovdiv Maria Vasileva.

"It was like magic - I was very interested in how to write codes, numbers and get interesting applications," added Radostin.

Today, the young programmer is in Forbes' annual Top 30 Under 30 for Europe's leading young leaders, inventors and entrepreneurs.

"It really inspires me. This is a very high assessment," he added.

Now Radostin is developing a new platform in which he is trying to use artificial intelligence to predict how cryptocurrencies will move forward. The student dreams of creating his own software company and building products that are useful to people. Let us recall the biography of Bill Gates (see here), and the fact that the young Bulgarian is ahead of him in his development.

Five months ago, Radi became famous for the fact that artificial intelligence solved problems from the state matriculation exam in Bulgarian language and literature with 78% accuracy. This project impressed the participants in the forum "STEM, innovation and something else", which was organized at the Mathematical High School "Acad. Kiril Popov” in Plovdiv, within the National Program “Innovations in Action”.

The creator of the platform is the young programmer Radostin Cholakov, who finished ninth grade at the high school. He is now 15 years old, but he started developing software at the age of nine while studying in the Rhodopean village of Barutin.

The project, entitled AzBuki.ML (https://azbuki-ml.com/), is an online platform that is a set of algorithms and models with artificial intelligence, with the ability to process the Bulgarian language. This includes correcting grammatical and punctuation errors, generating texts, synthesizing voice reading from written text, summarizing, assessing the mood in the texts. The computer can make short retellings of long news articles, as well as put commas in sentences.

Teachers joke that Radostin's invention is another argument for conducting exams in person, not online, as has been heard lately. The program can help tricksters get undeservedly high results.

However, Radi's last thought is to help with unfair exams. "My goal is to prepare a service for developers, companies or researchers who have no knowledge in the field of neuro-linguistic programming. My idea was inspired by similar English language models behind Google and Apple's voice assistants. I have developed applications for them and I have always been annoyed that they do not have good support for the Bulgarian language," says Radostin.

According to him, one of the main challenges in developing such a project with neural networks is data collection. For AzBuki.ML several million sentences and words were used, collected from the buildings of BAS, BulTreeBank and open online portals. He was assisted by scientists from IICT, IBE and UCHIMI at BAS, with their expert knowledge of the Bulgarian language, or with provided access to data. The platform is also used for scientific and demonstration purposes in several universities and high schools.

The possible applications of such a product are many. It can be used to analyze mood, it can be applied in online stores to measure the success of your products through user comments. Media websites can incorporate voice reading into their articles. Chatbot developers and other smart helpers can integrate the grammar analysis module.

The latest service in AzBuki.ML is software to improve the performance of voice synthesizers for the Bulgarian language, so that a more realistic voice can be synthesized from written text. With this addition, the platform already provides many opportunities not only for developers and software companies, but also in the field of education. For example, the computer will be able to read the text of textbooks to help children with disabilities.

Before participating in his first Olympics, the boy from Barutin heard from his math teacher in the village: "Radi, you do not have the necessary training here, there are no city lessons, entertaining, private teachers, we are not at this level, no wonder you can't do it." I was still young and that disappointed me a bit, but I didn't give up, says the young man.

"Being from the village of Barutin in the Rhodopes has never stopped me from dreaming, fighting and moving forward," says the programmer, who loves the beauty and fresh air of the Rhodopes.

Radostin already has many successful projects, won competitions, scholarships and awards. The applications and programs developed by him are of great interest. From the age of 12, Radostin began partnering with the global giant Google, which evaluated his programming skills. Radostin Cholakov developed two applications for "Google Assistant" and then it brought him gifts and $ 2,400 in the form of vouchers. Radi also made an application for playing chess.

Radostin's parents live modestly, his father works in a carpentry shop and his mother is a seamstress. But they are proud of their son, who has won every Olympics in the region, and his notebook is from top to bottom with sixes. He is a laureate of the National Olympiad in Information Technology for 2020 and 2021. He is also the winner of an award from The Bulgarian Association of Information Technologies, in the youth category, informs the Ministry of Education and Science.

21.12.2021

THEY DECIDED ON THE VALIDITY OF THE COVID CERTIFICATE WHEN TRAVELING

The European Commission has announced that it has adopted new mandatory rules for the validity of COVID vaccination certificates.

The period within which EU countries will be required to recognize travel certificates will be nine months from the last dose.

For the time being, no validity period for the additional (booster) dose certificates is foreseen.

The new rules introduce indications that clearly reflect the difference between completed vaccination certificates and additional dose certificates. For example, when placing an additional dose of vaccinated with a single-dose preparation, a document marked 2/1 will be issued, and for the others - 3/3, the commission explains.

It is added that when using certificates for purposes other than travel to the EU, countries will be able to apply their own rules.

So far, 807 million certificates have been issued in the EU, recognized in 60 countries around the world. It is specified that the presented changes are not related to changes in the form of the certificate, but will require reconfiguration of the applications, through which the validity of the documents of the vaccinated is checked.

21.12.2021

BULGARIA IS AMONG THE COUNTRIES WITH THE HIGHEST SOCIAL RISK IN THE EU

Bulgaria and Romania are the countries with the highest social risk in the European Union. This shows the Social Risk Index*, which surveys 185 countries around the world.

The ranking is prepared by Euler Hermes, and the assessment takes into account various factors that indicate the degree of long-term vulnerability. It provides a perspective on social tensions, which can have an impact on government, business development and the investment climate.

The Social Risk Index ranks countries from 1st to 185th, with those with the lowest risk at the forefront. Thus, Bulgaria ranks 59th, followed by only one member state of the European Union - Romania (63rd place). Experts point out that the two countries are the poorest in the EU and have the lowest level of public confidence in governance, as evidenced by a series of early elections. The assessment also took into account the low level of vaccination against COVID-19 with access.

The country with the lowest social risk in the world is Denmark, with Norway and Sweden also in the top three. France and the United States are the two developed economies for which Euler Hermes analysts report a significant increase in social risk compared to a previous study published in June 2020. In the current ranking, they rank 17th and 35th, respectively.

The winners in Central and Eastern Europe are the Czech Republic and Slovenia with 19th and 20th positions. With a better ranking than Bulgaria are countries in the region that are still outside the EU - Serbia and Montenegro - in 46th and 55th place.

Russia (75) and Ukraine (81) are behind, and Turkey (122) is in a very worrying position, where tensions are rising due to the weakening Turkish lira and declining purchasing power. "At the bottom" are Congo (185), Sudan (184) and Afghanistan (183).

"The Social Risk Index takes into account 12 parameters and in the long run can guide us to the vulnerability and stability of business in the respective countries. Therefore, it is another tool for companies to assess the degree of danger in commercial transactions," explains Kamelia Popova, manager of Euler Hermes for Bulgaria.

"Turkey, Romania and Russia are traditionally destinations where Bulgarian business finds its trading partners. Therefore, the tendency for higher social risk there should be taken into account, among other factors when concluding deals," she added.

20.12.2021

INTEREST RATES ON LOANS WILL RISE

Interest rates on loans will rise by the end of the year. This is what financial intermediaries expect, according to the Finance Ministry's quarterly bulletin "Financial Sector: Estimates and Expectations". The opinions of financial intermediaries reflect their assessments and expectations arising from the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The answers for maintaining interest rates still prevail, but in this issue the share of opinions on the increase increased significantly compared to the previous quarter at the expense of neutrals. In the third quarter there was a decrease in average interest rates for the period compared to the second quarter in corporate and housing loans and a slight increase in consumer loans, and in October there was a decrease compared to these values ​​in all three market segments, said the Finance Ministry.

A possible explanation for the expectations of the participants in the survey is a possible increase in credit risk in banks' portfolios. Factors for this would be the expected slowdown in the economy by the end of the year, as well as a gradual decline in the amount of loans approved for participation in the private moratorium on repayments of liabilities of non-financial corporations and households to banks.

Inflation expectations of respondents until the end of 2021 continue to rise and already point to a sharp rise in consumer prices. The distribution of responses is similar to that in the previous edition, with views on strong inflation rising. The moderate increase in consumer prices predicted by the survey participants in the third quarter exceeded expectations.

From 2.4% in June, the annual inflation rate (according to the HICP) reached 4% in September. Expectations for the fourth quarter have also been partially met, after the annual increase in the HICP reached 5.2% in October due to a significant increase in energy and food prices.

The participants in the survey predict that the rate of economic growth will slow down in the fourth quarter of the year. Banks are the most optimistic here as well, while 80% of investment intermediaries expect a slowdown in growth. The summarized result corresponds to the deterioration in October of the NSI business monitoring indicators on consumer confidence and the business climate in services, industry and trade.

Business optimism is growing for next year, but he is still cautious in his plans and sees risks to economic development that worry him. This shows the traditional survey of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce. It was held in the period November 8 - December 8, 2021 among 817 micro, small, medium and large enterprises across the country and from all sectors of the economy.

Financial intermediaries strongly express their expectations for an increase in intercompany indebtedness in the fourth quarter of this year compared to the previous one.

Higher international prices and difficult deliveries in some sectors could also lead to delays in payments between companies. Investment intermediaries, pension companies and management companies are the most pessimistic among respondents to the Finance Ministry's survey, while about 25% of commercial banks expect the level of intercompany indebtedness to remain.

A total of 42% of respondents expect an economic downturn in 2022, but in last year's survey pessimists were almost twice as many. 17% do not expect any change, and 31% are optimistic, which is three times more than last year.

The majority of respondents see the risks to the development of the Bulgarian economy in the expected increase in prices, fiscal and regulatory burden, as well as a decline in the number of jobs.

Respondents have the most serious concerns about the future regarding high energy prices and inflationary pressures (80-82%). 70% of respondents expect the covid crisis and the slowdown in global growth to have a negative impact on their business performance in 2022. There is serious pessimism about European environmental regulations, which are expected to have a negative impact on 53% of respondents.

Wage growth is projected by 49% of respondents, which is rather due to the expected increase in the minimum wage, and hence - an overall increase in labor costs.

20.12.2021

COMPANIES WILL BE HANDING OUT BIGGER CHRISTMAS BONUSES THIS YEAR

This year, the companies plan to distribute larger bonuses than in 2020, according to a study by the Chamber of Commerce.

More than 80 percent of companies are planning Christmas bonuses for employees. This year, the companies plan to give better bonuses than in 2020, according to a study by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. More than 80 percent of companies are planning Christmas bonuses for employees.

Despite the vague outlook and impact of the pandemic, much of the business is planning Christmas bonuses for staff. 30 percent of employers provide bonuses of up to BGN 200. Approximately the same amount is between BGN 200 and BGN 500, and about 20 percent will give out bonuses of up to BGN 1,000.

Entrepreneurs who declare that the additional remuneration is within the capabilities of their companies are almost a quarter more than last year. However, 12 per cent say they do not provide Christmas bonuses due to the effects of the crisis, and another 5 per cent have not yet made a final decision.

More than half of the managers state that they will give the same bonuses to everyone, and 35 percent will determine the additional remuneration individually according to the performance of the employees.

17.12.2021

WHAT KIND OF WORKERS WILL THE BUSINESS NEED NEXT YEAR?

The Bulgarian business will need 193,792 workers and specialists with skills and knowledge in various professional fields in the next 12 months.

This is shown by the results of the completed second (autumn) for 2021 national representative survey among active employers in Bulgaria on their short-term labor needs, the press center of the Employment Agency announced.

The survey is conducted jointly by the Employment Agency and the Employment Commissions of the Regional Development Councils in the 28 districts in the country.

The survey aims to collect and analyze up-to-date information on the professions, competencies, knowledge and skills of the employees sought by employers. The information collected refers to the demand for labor, both in the next 12 months and for the next three to five years. From 2020, the questionnaire also includes questions concerning the impact of COVID-19 on the required staff.

According to the National Statistical Institute, 4,325 employers in nearly 395,000 active enterprises took part in the autumn survey. In terms of economic activity, employers from the Trade, Transport, Hotels and Restaurants sector participated the most - 37 percent, followed by the Industry and Public Administration, Education, Humanitarian Health sectors - by 14.6 percent each. The largest share of companies is in the major industrial centers - Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, and the smallest - in the districts of Vidin, Silistra, Targovishte and Razgrad.

According to the survey, 46,924 employers intend to hire new staff over the next 12 months. Compared to the poll a year earlier - in September 2020, their number has shrunk by 14.5 percent.

Over the next 12 months, employers will need 108,487 qualified specialists, the most sought after being tailors, machine operators, builders, workers in the food industry, clothing operators, welders, landscaping workers, and operational accountants.

The Bulgarian business will need another 43,710 specialists with legal capacity or higher education, and the most sought-after professions will be: nurses, drivers, teachers, doctors, civil engineers, specialists in Information and Communication Technologies. Compared to a year earlier, the number of sought-after graduates has shrunk by 2.4 percent. There is no change in the most sought-after specialists with legal capacity or higher education. A total of 41,595 workers without a specialty will be needed in various sectors of the economy in the next 12 months, with an increase in demand on an annual basis of 8.1 percent.

A total of 72.2 per cent or 33,879 employers said they had difficulty finding suitable staff. In comparison, their share is 5.4 points higher than that of those who said they encountered difficulties a year ago. Employers have the most serious difficulties in finding sales consultants, machine operators, tailors, operational accountants, builders, while a year ago these professions were: cooks, again sales consultants, electricians, welders, sales representatives and builders.

The main form of employment in the next one year will be a permanent contract and a full-time job, which is stated by 78.8 percent of employers. Remote and home work would be offered by less than 700 employers.

A new wave of COVID-19 will negatively affect the decision to look for new staff at 52.3 percent of employers who intended to hire one. 47.7 percent are those who say they will not reduce the planned number of new staff wanted in the event of a new COVID -19 wave. In the case of such, employers will refuse to create 70,686 new jobs, nearly 70 percent of which will be for unskilled workers and 30 percent for professionals and management positions. In other words, a new COVID-19 wave would reduce the planned job creation by 36.5 percent, with the creation and dissemination of information and creative products being the most affected - a 52.8 percent reduction in new jobs and the construction sector - by 49.2 percent fewer new jobs.

In the next three to five years, the most sought after specialists will be in the fields of Economics, Administration and Management and Informatics and Computer Science, while the demand for specialists with secondary education will be in the fields of Wholesale and Retail, Construction and Production technologies - textiles, clothing, footwear and leather.

The most important competence that employers expect from the required staff is communication in the native language, followed by initiative and entrepreneurship, and digital competence.

In 11 of the 28 districts the declared labor needs are less than the registered unemployed, while in the remaining 17 the need for specialists and workers exceeds the number of registered jobseekers. In the district of Burgas the needs for labor force exceed 2.7 times the number of registered unemployed, in Sofia-capital the needs are 2.3 times more. In Shumen district the labor needs are only 35 percent of the available registered unemployed, in Lovech the needs are 44 percent of the free labor force.

Compared to the results of the survey a year ago, the total demand for labor remains almost unchanged, with half of the districts reporting an increase in labor demand compared to the previous year. The needs for workers and specialists in the Kyustendil district are growing most significantly - eight times. The districts of Vidin follow - almost six times, Yambol - four times, Dobrich - twice. At the other pole are the districts of Stara Zagora and Pernik, where needs are shrinking almost twice compared to 2020.

17.12.2021

UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE NORTHWEST HAS FALLEN

At the end of November, unemployment in the three northwestern districts of Montana, Vidin and Vratsa was 10.1 percent, while at the same time in 2020 it was 11.9 percent, according to the Regional Employment Service in Montana.

Compared to October, the unemployed in the three districts increased by 0.2 percent.

The registered unemployed at the end of November in the three districts were 17,396 people, which is 295 more than in October and 3,181 less than a year earlier. The highest unemployment rate is in the municipalities of Ruzhintsi - 49.6 percent and Yakimovo - 41.5 percent, and the lowest in the municipalities of Vratsa -3.6 percent and Montana - 4.0 percent.

In November, 923 unemployed people started working. Their number is 202 less than in October and 50 more than in the same month last year.

Under the anti-crisis measure 60/40 in the period from October 12 to November 30, 2021 in the three northwestern districts were approved 194 applications of employers for payment of 3,867 people, said the Regional Employment Service in Montana.