29.11.2023

GUARANTEEING PAYMENT OF SALARY

The payment of labor remuneration is the main obligation of every employer.

The frequency of payment of labor remuneration is agreed between the worker and the employer in the employment contract and can be twice a month, once a month, once every two or three months, etc.

Labor remuneration is paid personally to the worker or employee. Exceptionally, the remuneration can be paid to other persons, for which the employee submits a written request to the employer. The persons who can receive the labor remuneration are only those close to the employee.

Guaranteeing the payment of labor remuneration:

In the case of conscientious performance of labor duties, the worker or employee is guaranteed the payment of labor remuneration in the amount of 60 percent of his gross labor remuneration, but not less than the minimum wage for the country.

The difference up to the full amount of the remuneration remains due and is payable additionally together with the statutory interest.

22.11.2023

WHAT IS A "ORGANIZATION OF THE SALARY"?

The work done by the employee is remunerated. Labor remuneration is a monetary payment from the employer to the employee for the labor provided.

What is the organization of the salary and does the employee have the right to be informed about the methods of planning, the order of its determination and amendment?

In Bulgaria, issues regarding labor remuneration (salary) are extremely important for two main reasons - the low incomes of people, who are extremely sensitive to the fact that, for the same work, their colleagues in companies outside our country often receive many times more high reward. The second reason is that workers are often not aware of how their salary is determined because no one informs them about these and other details.

As a matter of fact, workers should be aware of and have the right to access one of the internal acts of each company, namely the internal rules for the salary, in which all the details are clarified. Another question is whether what is described there is fair, based on the specific numbers set in relation to the economic needs of individual workers and employees in different positions.

We will make some preliminary clarifications on the subject.

All professions and positions in Bulgaria are described and categorized in the National Classification of Professions and Positions, which divides the positions into 9 classes depending on the education and qualification required to occupy a certain position, with class 1 positions requiring the highest educational qualification and should be the highest paid, and for class 9 – the lowest educational qualification and therefore should be the lowest paid.

Payment of wages is the primary obligation of an employer and is paid in cash. The periodicity of salary payment is agreed between the employee and the employer in the employment contract. Unless otherwise agreed, the remuneration is paid twice every month (advance and final payment). It is also important to note that the salary is paid personally to the worker or employee.

Exceptionally, it can also be paid to other persons, but for this to happen, the employee must make a written request to the employer. The persons who can receive the labor remuneration are only those close to the employee, and the purpose of this restriction is to avoid abuse by ill-intentioned persons.

The salary is the basic remuneration for the worker, and to it can be added other, additional incentives for the worker such as bonuses in the form of vouchers for food and other purchases, private health insurance, in addition to the mandatory health insurance paid by the employer, and others.

The organization of the salary in enterprises is regulated in internal rules for the salary, which are an internal act of the enterprise. These internal rules for the salary are approved by the employer and cannot contradict the legal acts and the conditions agreed in the collective labor agreement.

Internal rules for the salary must include:

- general conditions for the organization of the salary in the enterprise;

- determination and distribution of salary funds;

- determination of minimum values or ranges of basic salaries by job level;

- the procedure and method for determining and amending the additional remuneration.

Internal rules for the salary may also include:

- systems and methods for evaluating jobs and positions;

- grouping of positions by job levels and qualification and educational requirements;

- rules and procedures for determining and amending basic wages;

- rules and procedures for evaluating work performance;

- labor payment systems;

- rules and procedures for determining individual wages;

- the procedure for collecting, processing, storing and using information and documents necessary for the calculation of the due gross and net labor remuneration;

- the order and method of payment of the salary.

Reference:

Art. 22 of the Ordinance on the structure and organization of the salary

15.11.2023

WHAT GOODS CAN WE BUY WITH FOOD VOUCHERS?

Through food vouchers, employers provide employees and management contracts with food, separately from their remuneration.

The provided food vouchers are a means of exchange through which users receive food and food items against the face value of the vouchers at restaurants, fast food outlets, as well as food outlets including grocery stores, supermarkets, hypermarkets, etc., operating in accordance with the requirements of the Food Law.

Food vouchers cannot be used as a means of payment for the purchase of wine, spirits, beer, tobacco products (cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff, etc.), as well as being exchanged for money.

As it becomes clear, the law places restrictions not only in terms of in what establishments the food vouchers can be used, but also for what goods and services.

It has certainly happened to most people to enter a store and when they try to pay with a voucher, the cashier politely or not so kindly explains that the relevant goods cannot be purchased in this way and must be paid for separately in cash. Why are these examples so common and what exactly are the limits on the goods we can buy with food vouchers?

Surprisingly or not, the law has regulated what is included in the concepts of "food" and "food products", which are different in nature. "Food" means any substance or product intended or capable of being used for human consumption, whether processed, partially processed or unprocessed within the meaning of the Food Act. "Food products" are all food raw materials, semi-finished products, finished products and meals, beverages, spices, flavoring substances, additives, auxiliary materials, etc., consumed by man to meet his energy and nutritional needs for life and growth.

The law in Bulgaria also regulates the conditions under which the respective food vouchers are provided and used. They are provided under conditions agreed between the employer and the representatives of the workers and employees and/or the representatives of the nationally representative trade union organizations in the enterprise.

Users who have received meal vouchers printed by one operator may only use these vouchers at a vendor outlet with which the relevant operator has a service contract.

When the amount of food or groceries purchased is lower than the nominal value of the voucher, the user is not entitled to receive the balance up to the nominal value of the voucher provided.

Any user who has received meal vouchers is required to return unused meal vouchers to the employer upon termination of employment or management contract.

Reference:

Art. 2, Art. 3, Art. 14 of Ordinance No. 7 of July 9, 2003 on the terms and conditions for issuing and revoking a permit to operate as a food voucher operator and to operate as an operator

Art. 2 of the Food Act.

14.11.2023

ROMANIAN PENSIONS WILL INCREASE BY AN AVERAGE OF 40% FROM NEXT YEAR

Romanian state pensions will rise by an average of 40% from September 2024 after recalculations based on an upcoming bill, increasing pension costs to 13.8 billion lei (about $2.97 billion) a month, Labor Minister Bucura said Fresh, reports Reuters.

The pension reform is a condition for Romania to continue using EU recovery funds, with the country committed to eliminating inequalities and removing pre-election political decisions from the process of pension increases.

Under the upcoming pensions bill, which the government will seek parliamentary approval this month, five million pensions will be indexed by 13.8% as early as January as a first step.

The recalculation, planned for September 2024, will eliminate inequality by ensuring that people who have worked the same job for the same number of years will receive the same pension.

The bill, which was supposed to be approved in the first half of this year, has been repeatedly delayed and will take effect from 2024, when Romania holds local, parliamentary, presidential and European elections.

Overall, government spending on pensions will rise to an estimated 146 billion lei ($31.45 billion) in 2024 from an estimated 115 billion lei this year.

Just under 2 million Romanians, or 10% of the population born during the communist-era abortion ban, will reach retirement age after 2030, representing a destabilizing increase in costs to the state pension system.

13.11.2023

WAGES FOR NIGHT WORK ARE BEING RAISED

The rate for night work to be increased from next year provides for a Draft Order amending Order No. 8121 to determine the amounts of additional remuneration for a scientific degree, for night work from 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., for working on public holidays.

The reason is the decree adopted by the Council of Ministers, with which from 01.01.2024 the minimum wage for the country becomes BGN 933 for a full working month, with a normal working time of 8 hours and a 5-day working week. The amount of the minimum hourly wage from BGN 5.58 is also being increased.

Currently, the ordinance provides that for each night hour worked or part thereof between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., workers shall be paid an additional night work remuneration of not less than 0.15 percent of the minimum wage established for the country, but not less than one lev.

Therefore, the order proposes that the amount of the additional remuneration for each night hour worked be changed from BGN 1.17 to BGN 1.40.

The change will also take effect from January 1 next year.

With another change in the Ordinance on the basic monthly remuneration of civil servants from the Ministry of the Interior, the amount of the starting salary for some of the positions should increase from BGN 780 to BGN 933.

10.11.2023

ECONOMIST: UNEMPLOYMENT WILL INCREASE AND THIS WILL HAVE A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON CREDIT

A situation is emerging in which we will observe serious processes in the labor market. I believe that unemployment will increase, which to some extent will have a negative impact on credit as well. This is predicted in Burgas by Kuzman Iliev, economist and financial analyst, founder of the organization "Bulgaria can do it alone".

The reason for this, it became known from his words, lies in the increasingly distinct processes in the world economy, in which revenues are shrinking and expenses are increasing. In our country, this will lead to two things - a reduction in wage costs or layoffs, Iliev pointed out during the ninth National Conference of the National Real Estate Association.

"If a person gets depressed and begins to think that no one is thinking about him, no one is calling him for his birthday, let him try not paying his mortgage payment, for example. Then he will suddenly realize that someone is very interested in him . That's where we are going - to a slightly more complicated time. The situation we are observing in the United States of America is extremely unnatural and abnormal. There, the interest rate on the mortgage loan is 7.5 percent - a record historical peak for interest rates, and in Bulgaria they are below 3 per hundred. This is very characteristic of a country that is on the periphery of some circle. In our case, it is the Eurozone. The center always exploits the periphery - this can be called, if you like, currency imperialism, but I use my own term "blood donation economy," Iliev said.

When you are on the periphery, inflation is always higher, the processes always come more slowly, but they hit harder, he commented, giving an example of the interest rates that the European Central Bank raises, but this is not felt in our country .

"Strange - the transmission is not working. But all economists are aware that this transmission is not working, because we, being on the board, do not closely follow the Eurosystem yet. We have our huge deposit base, and this money can now be placed by the banks. But that will change the moment security is felt very strongly in our partners. We see the Germans right now - they've been in recession practically for several months. They can't turn things around to positive growth there, and those are our main trading partners . We export our huge part to them," said Kuzman Iliev.

He added that these processes will also affect Bulgaria - interest rates will rise against the background of decreasing disposable income.

"This will be felt by those who today have some other lease, mortgage loan, earn 5,000-6,000 BGN salary, work a lot, but at some point it will turn out that the monthly installment on the loan has increased by 150-200 BGN and the bill won't come out. This is happening in the US and it gives the impression that savings are being used and credit cards are "booming", that is, the buffers are being eaten up. I think the Bulgarians also currently have some buffers and keep their money on deposits, because there is nothing to invest them in," Iliev added.

09.11.2023

WHERE ARE THE MOST WANTED WORKERS?

Over 190,000. That's how many vacancies are expected to be this year. Although a large part of them are not due to new positions, but to replacement demand, finding qualified labor is becoming increasingly difficult for employers, according to the Employment Agency, an analysis of "Numbers of the Week" shows.

"No people!". We are already hearing this phrase from the mouths of more and more employers, and the difficulties they face in finding qualified labor are confirmed by a recent study by the Employment Agency. Forecasts, unfortunately, are that this will continue for at least the next few years. But why? According to employers, on the one hand, due to the lack of professional skills, but on the other hand, due to the lack of personal qualities. A good education and qualification, knowledge of a foreign language and digital competences are of course important, but no less important for them are motivation, discipline and teamwork skills, for example.

And here's what's expected to happen in four years. Due to the shortage of employees with secondary education, who are the most sought after - over 1.6 million people, people with primary education will also be hired in positions intended for them. Although the share of persons with a higher degree of education will grow, the need for them will also grow.

In 2027, the jobs occupied by employees with primary education will be 13,000 fewer, and those occupied by people with secondary and higher education - between 30 and 50,000 more.

Both now and in 4 years' time, nearly half of all employed persons, which is about one and a half million people between the ages of 15 and 64, are expected to be employed in manufacturing, trade and auto repair and in the field of construction. These are also the activities in which the most employees with relatively lower qualifications are sought. In the last two places in the ranking, are the mining industry and real estate operations. At least labor will be needed there. However, in 2027, there will be more vacancies in all the listed activities than they are now.

The most common after 4 years, as they are today, will be salespeople in stores - nearly 180,000. Followed by administrative specialists - 118,000 and teachers, whose number will chase 100,000. Of the 20 most common professions, the most few people will work as professional car drivers and machine operators in the garment industry - about 45,000 each.

Difficulties in finding personnel will increasingly prompt employers to make decisions such as opening training centers to the enterprises themselves or financing training and retraining of already employed employees. However, not a few individuals are unmotivated to learn or upgrade their skills, the study further states. Many of them are aware that there is a serious shortage of machine mechanics, for example, but say that they do not want occupations with a low reputation in society, sometimes even despite the good pay.

Regarding the distribution of employment by region, significant inequalities are observed, which do not seem to be overcome soon. The first three places are expectedly occupied by the districts in which the three largest cities in the country are located. Almost a quarter of the employed persons are expected to work in Sofia-city. The second most important area for the labor market is Plovdiv - it covers nearly 10% of the employed, and the third - Varna, with just over 7%. The last two places are for Silistra and Vidin, with a forecast of 35 and 26,000 workers respectively after 4 years.

The greatest need for employees with basic and even lower education is expected to be in the Kardzhali region - there it will be needed for 12% of the jobs. The districts of Targovishte and Sliven are next. The need for employees with a secondary education is expected to be the highest in the Pernik district - nearly 73% and a half, and the most employees with a higher education will be sought after in Sofia - nearly half of the jobs in the district will require a university diploma. According to the research, the discrepancy between the required and offered skills is one of the most serious problems in the labor market in our country, the solution of which could be precisely additional training.

It is indicated that there is currently a surplus of persons with primary or lower education in the labor market. They are approximately 120,000. At the same time, however, there is a deficit of persons with higher education - about 53,000, but even more of persons with secondary education - 67,000.

08.11.2023

40% DROP IN JOB OFFERS IN THE IT SECTOR

Job offers on career site JobTiger in October 2023 were 2,900 fewer, or minus 6 percent from the previous month, according to the HR and career site company's monthly analysis.

The difference is mainly due to a more noticeable drop in advertisements in the "Hospitality and Restaurant", "Trade and Sales" and "Manufacturing" sectors. On a year-over-year basis, a steady decline of 7 percent or 3,300 fewer job offers continues, driven primarily by lower information technology job postings.

According to the analysis of the HR company and career site "JobTiger", on an annual basis, there is also a decline in most sectors. It continues to be most drastic in the IT sector, where offers are 40 percent less compared to the same period in 2022.

Job offer by city has decreased in all of the leading regional cities. In Sofia, the decline is by 4 percent, in Plovdiv by 13 percent, in Varna by 7 percent, in Burgas - by 11 percent, in Ruse - by 10 percent, in Stara Zagora - by 13 percent.

As a share distribution, the ads in Sofia are 45 percent, and in the other cities Plovdiv - 10 percent, Varna - 8 percent, Burgas - 4 percent, Ruse - 3 percent and Stara Zagora - 3 percent.

In almost all sectors, a drop in job postings was observed in October. The exceptions are "Marketing and Advertising", where there are 60 more offers and a growth of 4 percent, and "Healthcare and Pharmacy" - with 130 more offers and a growth of 6 percent.

The reason for most of the offers in "Healthcare and Pharmacy" is the posting of job positions in it for overseas, which is a standard practice for recruitment in this sector. In contrast to previous years, in which this type of offer was promoted on the Bulgarian market mainly during the summer months, in 2023 the announcements will appear on the job sites in the last quarter of the year as well, reports the company.

With the biggest drop in job offers is the "Hospitality and Restaurant" sector - 1,080 offers less, which equates to minus 16 percent, followed by the "Trade and Sales" sectors with 770 offers less and a 7 percent drop. In third place is the "Manufacturing" sector with 570 fewer offers and a drop of 8 percent.

The fourth position is occupied by the "Logistics and transport" sector, with 270 fewer offers and a drop of 6. In fifth place is the IT sector with 200 fewer offers and a 6 percent drop. "Administrative and service activities" took sixth place with 170 fewer offers and a 4 percent drop. Seventh position is for the "Construction" sector with 130 fewer proposals and a 5 percent drop. In last place is "Accounting, auditing, finance" with 60 fewer offers and a 3 percent drop.

By share distribution of job offers in the country, the "Trade and Sales" sector continues to occupy a quarter of the market and is in first place with a share of 25 percent, followed by "Manufacturing" with 17 percent and "Hospitality and Restaurant" with 13 percent .

The share distribution of the other sectors is unchanged compared to the previous month: "Logistics and transport" holds 10.8 percent, "Administrative and service activities" - occupies 10.7 percent of the market, IT - 8 percent, "Construction" - 6 percent, " Healthcare and Pharmacy" - 5.4 percent, "Accounting, Auditing, Finance" - 4.8 percent, "Marketing and Advertising" - 4 percent and "Art" - 1 percent.

Since the beginning of the year, the number of offers for work from home or telecommuting has decreased by 31 percent, or 3,050 fewer postings, which is directly related to the lower number of postings in the information technology sector, in which this type of offer predominates.

As of September this year a decrease of 4 percent of these ads is reported, as a share of the total they are 9 percent.

The distribution of this type of offer by sector is 54 percent in the IT sector, followed by "Administrative and service activities" with a decrease of 18 percent, the sectors of the outsourcing industry - a decrease of 15 percent and "Trade and sales" - a decrease of 7 percent.

08.11.2023

WHEN CAN WE HAVE REDUCED WORKING HOURS?

According to Art. 137, para. 1 of the Labor Code, reduced working hours are established for: 1. workers and employees who perform work under specific conditions and the risks to their life and health cannot be removed or reduced, regardless of the measures taken, but the reduction of the duration of working hours limit the risks to their health; 2. workers or employees under 18 years of age.

The types of work for which reduced working hours are established are determined by an ordinance of the Council of Ministers - Ordinance on determining the types of work for which reduced working hours are established.

In Art. 2 and Art. 3 of the Ordinance, the works for which workers/employees are entitled to a reduced working day are explicitly stated. In Art. 4 of the Ordinance on determining the types of work for which reduced working hours are established, it is stated that workers and employees are entitled to reduced working hours for the days on which they perform the tasks specified in Art. 2 and 3 works for no less than half of the normal duration of working hours established by the Labor Code.

Employees with total vision loss have the right to a 7-hour working day, regardless of the type of work performed.

Only employees performing the work provided for in the regulation have the right to reduced working hours.

The overall control for compliance with labor legislation in all industries and activities, including the payment of unpaid wages and benefits after termination of the employment relationship, is carried out by the Executive Agency "Main Labor Inspection" under the Minister of Labor and Social Policy - Art. 399 of the Labor Code.

In Art. 138a, para. 1 and para. 2 of the Labor Code stipulates that in the event of a reduction in the volume of work, the employer may establish for a period of up to three months in one calendar year part-time working hours for employees in the enterprise or in its unit who work full-time, after prior agreement with the representatives of the trade union organizations and the representatives of the workers and employees under Art. 7, para. 2.

The duration of working hours under para. 1 cannot be less than half of the legally established for the period of calculation of working time. The procedure to be followed by the employer is regulated in detail in Art. 9 of the Ordinance on working hours, breaks and vacations. The establishment of part-time work is carried out by a written order of the employer, issued no later than 10 working days before the date of transition to part-time work. In the provision of Art. 9 the details of the order are also indicated.

07.11.2023

BULGARIA HAS THE HIGHEST SOCIAL RISK IN THE EU

Bulgaria has the highest social risk in the European Union, according to the Social Resilience Index, which monitors 12 economic, social and political parameters in 185 countries around the world. This was announced by the company "Allianz Trade" (Allianz Trade), which prepares the ranking.

The results of the study cover the period from early 2022 to September 2023.

The Social Sustainability Index ranks countries from first to 185th, with those with the lowest risk at the top. This year, Bulgaria retains the 59th position, albeit with slightly worse indicators, while Romania is already in 56th place compared to 2021, according to Allianz Trade. Experts note that the two countries remain the poorest in the EU and have the lowest levels of public trust in government, adding that this is evidenced by frequent civil protests, early elections and unstable governments.

This year, the company's experts warn of a worsening of social stability at the global level, and among the main reasons for this are the devaluation of currencies, the growth of food and fuel prices, and reduced labor force participation. Thus, the differences in the level of social risk between developed and developing economies around the world are deepening because of the different resilience to rising living costs and the energy crisis, they note.

The country with the best social sustainability in the world remains Denmark, and the top three also include Finland and Switzerland, which climb by three and one position compared to 2021. Latin America is the only region in the world where in the last two years there has been reducing social risk. The most serious deterioration occurs in countries that rely exclusively on food and fuel imports. At the same time, some exporters such as the UAE and Qatar are reporting favorable trends, the analysis states.

Allianz Trade experts identify the upcoming elections in a large number of countries in 2024 as a potential factor for increasing social tension and risk on a global scale. Another factor in the coming years is expected to be the development of artificial intelligence, which could lead to job losses and the spread of misinformation.

"Some governments are beginning to put in place responsive regulatory mechanisms to protect jobs and avoid other risks to social stability with the advent of artificial intelligence. But for economies heavily dependent on service industries, it will be a serious challenge to adapt quickly and catch up with technological advances," the report states.

"The social risk index can serve as another tool for companies to navigate the stability of the business environment in the respective countries. This is an additional signal of what we can expect in the future when conducting commercial transactions with partners in the respective markets," commented Кamelia Popova, manager of "Euler Hermes" for Bulgaria, already operating under the trademark "Allianz Trade", quoted in the announcement.