28.05.2021
WHICH PROFESSION IS THE MOST DESIRED IN OUR COUNTRY
"Security guard" continues to be among the most desired professions in our country, there is an increased interest in 2021 in the field of "Plant and Animal Husbandry", according to data from the National Agency for Vocational Education and Training /NAVET/.
The data from the information system of NAVET show that for the first months of 2021 (from January 1 until now) the most popular professions are in the professional fields "Motor vehicles, ships and aircraft", "Plant and animal husbandry", "Computer sciences "," Hairdressing and cosmetic services "and" Security ". This was announced in an interview with BTA by the chairman of NAVET eng. Mariana Pavlova.
Compared to the same period in 2020, there is a decrease in the number of trained by about 15%. The number of trainees in the field of "Plant and Animal Husbandry" has increased almost 4 times. According to Pavlova, the data are intermediate and the agency cannot commit to specific conclusions at this stage.
In the past 2020, 79,809 people have been trained in licensed Vocational Training Centers, and slightly more than one-fifth (22 percent) are trainees in professions and specialties of the professional field "Motor vehicles, ships and aircraft".
The most desired professions are "Security Guard", "Lifting Equipment Installer", "Transport Equipment Installer", "Programmer" and "Marketing Associate".
"Trends in recent years have been maintained, and there is interest in conducting professional training also in the field of hospitality, restaurants and catering, hairdressing and cosmetic services, as well as plant and animal husbandry," Pavlova said.
According to the chairman of NAVET, the crisis has not changed the preferred professional areas. They remain the same compared to previous years. "It can be argued that the trainees in the centers make choices that are in line with their individual desires rather than the current situation on the labor market," Pavlova added.
Deficits of people with secondary education and a surplus of human resources with higher and primary education are expected on the labor market.
NAVET experts also cite reports on the labor market of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy. According to the report "Medium-term and long-term forecasts for the development of the labor market in Bulgaria, employment and labor market imbalances, labor supply factors (2008-2034)", there are significant structural deficits of people in the labor market and are expected. with secondary education and structural surplus of human resources with higher and primary and lower education.
According to the brief analysis of the labor market as of March 2021, published on the MLSP website, the largest share of job vacancies in the real economy is declared in the manufacturing industry (26.7 percent), followed by hotels and restaurants (13, 9 per cent), trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (10.5 per cent), government (9.5 per cent), agriculture, forestry and fisheries (9.1 per cent) and administrative and support service activities (6 ,3 percent).
The system of vocational education and training provides qualified specialists for many of these areas, so that those who would like to change their professional field can do so by joining vocational training, said Eng. Mariana Pavlova. According to the expert, the system provides flexibility - people can undergo vocational training in part of the profession and enter the labor market in a relatively short time.
Employers prefer the so-called "soft skills" to professional ones, but Bulgaria remains one of the last places to create such skills.
Another point on which different stakeholders agree is that the transition between different positions and professions would be smoother if people have a set of key competencies that help them change, said Mariana Pavlova. She pointed out that a number of studies at European level show that employers prefer the so-called "soft skills" to professional ones, which can be acquired in the process of work. On the other hand, Bulgaria ranks 26th (out of a total of 31 systems) in terms of skills creation, according to the European Skills Index, a complex indicator for measuring the effectiveness and comparison of skills systems in different countries, monitored by the European Center for Development of vocational training Cedefop.
According to the chairman of NAVET, this is the reason to take action to promote key competencies and their inclusion in the curriculum in vocational training. These are adaptability, flexibility, skills for working under pressure, digital competencies, etc., which are extremely important at every stage of individual career management, regardless of age and education of people.
In recent years, the share of trainings that are funded at the request of the employer is high, and in 2020 such trainings are 21.9 percent of all trainings conducted in the centers. Mariana Pavlova said that the role of employers in the system of vocational education and training is extremely important, because, on the one hand, they state exactly their needs for staff training, and on the other hand they trust NAVET for quality assurance in individual VTC in terms of facilities, teachers, compliance with state educational standards.
Last but not least, by organizing and financing trainings for their employees, employers create loyalty and commitment in them, which gives results in the medium and long term, said the chairman of NAVET.
28.05.2021
FROM JUNE 1, PAYMENTS TO THE NATIONAL REVENUE AGENCY IN SOME CITIES BY CARD AND ELECTRONICALLY
From June 1, 2021, payments of taxes and social security contributions in the offices of the National Revenue Agency in Gabrovo, Dobrich, Kardzhali, Montana, Pernik, Ruse, Stara Zagora and Yambol can be made free of charge using the physical POS terminals of the Revenue Agency, as and through an e-service for payment in the Portal for electronic services of the department.
Payments to the NRA will continue to be made by bank transfer from any bank in the country or other payment service provider, but according to the tariffs of the respective financial institutions.
With a decision of UBB, its existing counters in these offices will work with customers until the end of the working day on May 31, 2021.
Online payment is one of the most frequently used electronic services of the NRA. From the beginning of the year until now in the so-called Virtual POS (e-card payment service) almost BGN 100 million were paid free of charge, and since the creation of the service almost 1.5 million transactions have been made for over BGN 500 million.
The electronic service "Information on the obligations with the possibility of making a payment" is available with a personal identification code (PIC) or a qualified electronic signature (QES) in the Electronic Services Portal of the NRA. The Revenue Agency clarifies that no fees are due to the NRA when paying through the virtual POS terminal and it is reflected in the tax-insurance account of the client immediately, without the usual delay in bank transfer.
Additional information about the payments to the NRA can be obtained from the website of the agency or through the information center of the NRA by phone: 0700 18 700.
27.05.2021
THEY GRANT LOW-INTEREST LOANS TO START-UPS AND SOCIAL ENTERPRISES
The Fund of Funds (FF) has launched a third procedure for the selection of financial intermediaries for the implementation of the instrument "Microcredit with shared risk".
The resource is under the Operational Program "Human Resources Development 2014-2020" (OPHRD), co-financed by the European Social Fund. The total budget of BGN 9 million is divided into three separate items, with a resource of BGN 1 million, BGN 2 million and BGN 6 million, respectively.
The financial instrument aims to improve access to finance for start-ups, including people from certain vulnerable groups (unemployed over 6 months, young people under 29 and people with disabilities) and social enterprises.
The funds will be provided in the form of microloans in the amount of BGN 5,000 to 48,895 or their equivalent in EUR. The repayment period is up to 10 years and a grace period of up to 2 years for the loan principal.
The instrument will attract additional private capital aimed at achieving public labor market policies. In the new procedure the scope of the final recipients has been expanded as eligible enterprises are also those registered up to 5 years before the date of application. The additional reliefs introduced are aimed at overcoming the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis.
The maximum financing from the Fund of Funds is up to 90% of the amount of each individual loan. Financial intermediaries should provide the remaining 10%. The funds from the FNF have zero interest rates, and the co-financing from the intermediary is at market levels, and the final recipients will pay a weighted average interest rate, which is significantly more favorable than the market interest rate.
Acquisition of tangible and intangible assets will be financed through "Microcredit with shared risk"; working capital in connection with the development/expansion of activities of the enterprise or the self-employed person; the development and improvement of the skills of the employees of the micro-enterprise or of the entrepreneur in case of self-employment.
For additional information and questions about the started procedure you can contact the team of the Fund of Funds by e-mail: office@fmfib.bg.
26.05.2021
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION ALLOCATES EUR 511 MILLION TO BULGARIA UNDER SURE
The European Commission has allocated € 14.137 billion to 12 EU Member States under the seventh tranche of financial support under the SURE instrument. As part of today's operations, Belgium received € 2 billion, Bulgaria € 511 million, Cyprus € 124 million, Greece € 2.54 billion, Spain € 3.37 billion, Italy € 751 million, Lithuania € 355 million. , Latvia - € 113 million, Malta - € 177 million, Poland - € 1.56 billion, Portugal - € 2.41 billion and Estonia - € 230 million.
For the first time, Bulgaria and Estonia receive funding under the SURE instrument. The other ten EU countries have already benefited from loans under this instrument.
This SURE support will help Member States to cope with sudden increases in public spending aimed at maintaining employment in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. In particular, Member States will be helped to cover costs directly related to the financing of national part-time schemes and other similar measures introduced in response to the pandemic, including for the self-employed.
Today's payments are a consequence of the seventh issue of social bonds under the SURE instrument, which in recent days has attracted significant interest from investors in difficult market conditions.
25.05.2021
WHO AND HOW CAN TERMINATE THE USE OF OUR PAID LEAVE
The law provides for two possibilities to interrupt the use of paid annual leave.
In the first place, interruption of the use of paid annual leave may take place when, during the use of paid annual leave, another type of paid (for example, sick leave) or unpaid (for example, parental leave) leave is granted. According to the law, when during the use of the paid annual leave the employee is allowed another type of paid or unpaid leave, the use of the paid annual leave is interrupted at his request and the rest is used additionally by agreement between him and the employer.
The interruption is made at the request of the employee. The law does not provide a special legal form for this request. In practice, this is usually done with an oral statement of intent to interrupt the use of paid annual leave, upon presentation of a sick leave or other document showing that a type of leave other than paid leave is permitted.
The practice of the employer unilaterally terminating paid annual leave that it has already authorized is illegal.
Paid leave of the employee may be interrupted by mutual consent of the parties, expressed in writing. For this purpose, the employee should serve a written proposal to the other party to interrupt the paid leave. The notified party should accordingly express (if it wishes) its written consent for the leave to be suspended from the relevant date and used additionally.
In addition to these two cases, the employer has no right to unilaterally interrupt (for example by order) the use of paid annual leave provided that he has already authorized it for the specified period of time, unless the employee gives his explicit written consent. The same applies in the opposite situation - without the written consent of the employer, the employee may not unilaterally terminate the use of his annual leave, except in the cases under Art. 175, para. 1 of the Labor Code.
Reference:
Art. 175, para. 1 of the Labor Code
Art. 175, para. 2 of the Labor Code
21.05.2021
BDB HAS STARTED WORK ON STRUCTURING TWO NEW WARRANTY PRODUCTS UNDER INVESTEU
The Bulgarian Development Bank has started work on structuring two new guarantee products under the European program InvestEU, the bank announced.
The total resource that can be mobilized in support of Bulgarian companies and public companies is up to BGN 1.3 billion.
The funds will support projects to create sustainable infrastructure in the field of environment and strengthen the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises, the Development Bank said.
One of the instruments is aimed at investing in the implementation of water and waste management policies and is in line with the circular economy.
Part of the tool will invest in the construction of infrastructure for charging electric vehicles. The coverage of financial instruments with a guarantee is expected to reach BGN 300 million.
The second instrument focuses on another specific objective of the InvestEU program - improving access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises, including mid-caps, under more favorable market conditions.
The aim is to improve the competitiveness of enterprises, including by increasing their capacity for digitization and innovation. The coverage of the product is expected to reach BGN 978 million.
The consultations are aimed at potential financial intermediaries such as commercial banks, leasing companies and non-bank financial institutions, as well as at interested borrowers. The aim of the study is to take into account market demand and to help structure the appropriate tools.
For InvestEU
The InvestEU program will be implemented for the period 2021-2027 as the EU's main instrument for investing in economic recovery, environmental progress and employment in Europe. It is one of the tools to support growth after the Kovid crisis and to achieve the EU's goals of building a green, digital and sustainable European economy.
More information about InvestEU and market research can be found here.
20.05.2021
VISION FOR TRANSFORMATION OF THE BULGARIAN ECONOMY IN THE POST-COVID DECADE
Analysis of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce
The transformation of the Bulgarian economy in the next decade is both necessary and inevitable. This is because some of the well-known statistics are very worrying and not typical of an EU Member State or even a developed country. According to the World Population Review (2021), Bulgaria has the highest mortality rates in the world in 2021. In this respect, it is ahead of developing countries. Bulgaria is also at risk of ambient air quality, with the most serious exceedances observed in the indicators SO2 and PM10 according to the European Commission (Press release IP / 19/4256. Brussels, 25 July 2019 and others).
Exactly these two indicators are sufficiently indicative of the state of an economy. On the one hand, they provide information on the level of quality of life in a country. This affects the desire for migration, which in turn affects the size of the active workforce and at the same time consumer demand (which is one of the main factors for the growth of Bulgarian GDP). On the other hand, these two indicators affect the opportunities for attracting foreign direct investment: declining skilled labor force, poor potential of the domestic market for consumer demand, poor ambient air, combined with very high mortality, indexing a low level of health - repel the desire of foreign specialists to be seconded to Bulgaria. This largely explains why in recent years foreign direct investment has surrounded us and targeted our neighbors who are not even members of the EU.
Even with only two indicators can indicate the need for transformation of the Bulgarian economy in the next decade. And many more can be listed.
COVID-19 has caused the worst global economic crisis in nearly 100 years. This is not the first global economic crisis, but it is the first global crisis of an exogenous nature. That is why economic policies constructed on the vision of instrumental management of endogenous cyclicality have failed.
Until now, the Bulgarian economy has relied on classical macroeconomic policy. Leading role of fiscal policy in combination with balanced participation of monetary policy (there are different classifications for the types of economic policy).
But the annual growth rate of economic policy so far can hardly be called convergent. PPP-based calculations do not take into account the difference in the quality of goods offered by the same company for high and low purchasing power markets. And when using indicators based on current prices - e.g. GDP / capita, the difference is 4 times compared to the EU-27 average.
This requires its change in direction:
First, the strategic use of targeted manageable budget deficits. There is nothing wrong with using budget deficits when they are targeted (support important structural reforms in the economy) and manageable (economic growth keeps them at low risk).
Second, assessing the risks of long-term zero interest rate policy: "liquidity trap", "closed economy effect", "escape to cryptocurrencies", etc. Especially in exogenous shocks, the combination of zero interest rate and currency board is not effective enough. Cryptocurrencies and quasi-monetary aggregates created by private non-financial entities will still create strong pressure on public monetary policy in balancing it between the interest rate and the amount of money in circulation.
Third, the maintenance of normative fixed prices, normative fixed wages, "artificial" employment exhausts the economy, not supports it. In such cases, the level of the so-called "gray economy" or human labor is replaced by productive capital and the opposite effect occurs. These are some of the reasons for the existence of structural problems in some economic sectors.
Fourth, digitalization of the economy and the public sector, combined with constant and real professional development of the workforce. Digitalization is happening globally and at a rapid pace. If Bulgaria lags behind in this process, it will not be able to catch up with the other countries. At present, the potential for economic growth based on the low cost of labor has been exhausted because unemployment, even in a pandemic, is close to a minimum. This means that accelerating growth can only be based on digitalisation and GDP restructuring.
Fifth, a change in the structure of the fiscal burden (which is different from the tax burden). The focus of restructuring must be on so-called 'quasi-taxes'. The overall fiscal burden in Bulgaria is quite high compared to other developed countries. This process must be carried out in parallel with the restructuring of the health system, energy and other unreformed sectors.
Sixth, investment in science and education combined with reform. The reform in this sector has so far not yielded significant results. Only one Bulgarian university (in some years and one of the medical ones) enters the international rankings. The number of patents created by Bulgarian universities is below the European average. Investments first in science and next in education are key to the future restructuring of the Bulgarian economy into a digital one.
Seven, green transformation of the economy. As much as Bulgaria is dependent on local energy resources, which provide energy security, the world is transforming. The United States is cutting 130,000 jobs in the mining and energy industries related to fossil fuels. China has announced plans for a rapid transformation of its energy sector over the next decade. The EU is raising its targets in this area. The focus is on the risks of the pace of climate change on long-term investment. Green transformation is inevitable and Bulgaria, instead of postponing this process, should try to take a leading place in it. This will require high investments, which cannot be secured by European funding alone.
Eight, the disappearance of labor-intensive low-tech industries. The pandemic has shown that labor-intensive industries are highly dependent on national health systems, which are weak in developing countries. Such are even in transition economies. In order not to break supply chains, this type of production will be replaced by high-tech robotic processes. In this situation, the cost-benefit analysis of robotics is a plus and the high initial investment is worth it, and the development of science already allows it technically. This means investing in retraining the workforce, which will also take time. Therefore, this retraining process must start ahead of time before burdening public social spending.
The post-COVID economy will intensify, not limit, globalization. Global supply chains will become digital, greener and more technological. Anyone who relies on low cost of production resources and low level of production technologies will be excluded from them. On the contrary, high investment in science (following the example of vaccines) will be the new norm and will bring economic benefits.
20.05.2021
IN WHICH CITIES ARE THEY LOOKING FOR THE MOST WORKERS
The companies in Sofia are looking for the most staff, and for the week from May 10 to 16 768 people have been hired from the registered in the labor offices, the latest NSI data show.
Due to the beginning of the summer season, staff is also sought in Burgas and Varna, and for a week the companies have hired 639 and 520 unemployed, respectively.
The labor market is also active in Blagoevgrad and Plovdiv, where 463 and 491 people are employed, respectively, in just one week. The least workers are looking for business in Montana. Only 69 people found jobs there in mid-May and Vidin, where 99 people were hired.
A total of 6,976 Bulgarians registered with Employment Offices started work for the week of May 10-16. The newly registered unemployed are 5,661 people, according to NSI data.
Most new redundancies are in Sofia - 531 people, followed by Plovdiv - 484, Blagoevgrad - 392, Burgas - 316.
Over 200 people per week lost their jobs in Varna, Vratsa, Pazardzhik, Pleven, Ruse, Haskovo, Stara Zagora. The least redundancies have been undertaken by companies in Gabrovo - only 79 laid off.
20.05.2021
THE SERVICES OF ALL MUNICIPALITIES IN BULGARIA ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE
The services of all municipalities in Bulgaria are now available electronically through the Portal for access to electronic administrative services - https://egov.bg of the State Agency "Electronic Government", the agency announced.
All municipal administrations are affiliated to the Unified Model for ordering, paying for and receiving electronic administrative services. Every municipal service can be requested and paid for every municipality in the country.
It is necessary for the citizens to have a personal profile in "My space" on the egov.bg Portal and a qualified electronic signature. The services can be requested with both physical and mobile electronic signatures.
19.05.2021
THE EMPLOYMENT AGENCY CONTINUES TO ACCEPT DOCUMENTS ON ANTI-CRISIS EMPLOYMENT MEASURES
Consultancy Center - Berkovitsa provides summary information on the extension of a total of four measures to maintain employment, provide new employment and support families for the pandemic, implemented by the Employment Agency under the Operational Program "Human Resources Development". Additional funding provided by CMD № 182/07.05.2021 allows the measures to be implemented by the following deadlines:
The allocated additional funds amount to BGN 22 million for the preservation of 33,000 jobs in the most affected sectors "Hotels and restaurants", "Tourism" and "Transport". Documents for this measure will be submitted by 31.05.2021. So far, more than BGN 52 million have been transferred to 2,937 companies and self-insured from these sectors.
- Parents of children from 0 to 5 years of age, not enrolled in a nursery/kindergarten, as the parents have a job or employment or are self-employed/self-insured, but currently take care of their children and are not returned to work;
- Parents with many children - with three or more children under the age of 12 who have returned to work, with children attending crèches/kindergartens as well as school.
- Unemployed persons registered with the labor office who are parents of children from 0 to 5 years of age and are not registered in a crèche/kindergarten or large parents of children from 0 to 12 years of age attending a crèche/gardens as well as a school.
The allocated additional funds amount to BGN 23 million. Documents under the program will be available until May 31, 2021. Since its beginning, nearly BGN 48 million have been paid, and 7,162 parents and families have used or are currently using babysitter.
The allocated additional funds amount to BGN 25 million. Under this measure, over BGN 66 million have already been transferred for compensation and employment of 52,319 employees.
The allocated additional funds amount to BGN 50 million. So far, nearly 20,000 new jobs have been created under the measure. With the additional funds, another 11,000 jobs can be created. Under the measure, applications will be accepted until the financial resource is exhausted.
Consultancy Center - Berkovitsa reminds that until June 15, 2021 employers can apply for funds under the measure "60/40", implemented under the Council of Ministers № 151/2020, as amended with CMD № 93/2021. Under this measure, funds are paid for maintaining employment in the months of April and May 2021 to companies from almost all sectors of the economy, whose sales revenues have decreased by over 20% compared to the average revenues for 2019.
Detailed information on all measures to support and promote employment is published on the official website of the Employment Agency.
