26.08.2024

IN WHICH SECTORS ARE WORKERS SOUGHT?

The level of registered unemployment in the country of 5.4% was reported in July by the administrative statistics of the Employment Agency.

As a result of the work of the Roma and youth mediators, as well as the labor mediators in the labor offices, more than 5,150 inactive persons on the labor market were activated during the month, which is 18% more compared to the previous month.

At the end of July, a total of 152,844 people were registered as unemployed at the labor offices. 14,542 unemployed persons started work during the month. 339 pensioners, students and employed persons also started work with the support of the labor offices.

The number of vacancies on the primary market declared in the labor offices is increasing, which in July was 8805. In the real economy, the most jobs are in the sphere of processing industry (24.0%), education (18.8%), public administration (11.5 %), trade (10.6%), administrative and auxiliary activities (7.8%), followed by hotel and restaurant industry (5.2%).

The occupations most in demand by businesses in July are: Educators, Human Care Personnel, Mining and Manufacturing, Construction and Transportation Workers, Salespersons, Machine Operators of Stationary Machinery and Equipment, Waste Collection and Related Workers, Personnel, employed in the field of personal services, drivers of motor vehicles and mobile equipment, cleaners and helpers, skilled workers in the production of food, clothing, wood products and related, etc.

There were 4,669 representatives of risk groups who found employment last month through subsidized jobs. Of them, 3,817 started work under employment programs and measures financed by the state budget, and 852 under projects of the Human Resources Development Program  2021 – 2027, co-financed by the European Social Fund plus. In July, more than 12,500 training vouchers were issued to employed and unemployed persons.

23.08.2024

FAMILY BUSINESSES AND CRAFTSMEN CAN APPLY FOR A GRANT OF UP TO BGN 150,000

Family businesses and enterprises from the creative industries and crafts have one more month to apply for support with European funds to increase their production capacity, the Ministry of Innovation and Growth announced.

Companies can apply for a grant of between BGN 15,000 and BGN 150,000 under the "Competitiveness and Innovation in Enterprises" Program, which is administered by the Ministry of Innovation and Growth. The total budget of the procedure is BGN 117.5 million.

For the first time, support is specifically aimed at micro and small family businesses, and those from the creative industries and craft sector.

With the funds, the companies will be able to buy new machines, equipment, tools, as well as specialized software. They will have the opportunity to create online stores to improve their market performance and increase their sales. The procedure will also provide support for the introduction of information and communication technologies or modules to improve management, production and logistics processes.

Co-financing is a minimum of 25 percent for family businesses and those in the creative industries and at least 15 percent for businesses in the craft sector.

The Ministry of Innovation and Growth launched the information campaign to present the procedure "Support for family businesses, enterprises from creative industries and crafts" from the Program "Competitiveness and Innovation in Enterprises" in the middle of last year.

The main objective of the procedure is to encourage investments to improve production capacity and optimize business processes in family businesses, enterprises from the creative industries and crafts and thus contribute to increasing their competitiveness and strengthening their market presence.

22.08.2024

QUESTIONS TO IMPRESS THE NEW BOSS

Starting a new job is a trial and a challenge, and the most pressing and greatest thing is to make a good first impression. The sooner you build fruitful relationships with your boss and coworkers, the easier it will be to steer your career in the right direction.

For the first day of work, of course, you should dress carefully, having researched whether there is a mandatory dress code and, if not, what is meant by "appropriate".

It may help to ask a colleague you know.

If there isn't one, just use common sense. You should be one idea more elegant than you will be in the following days, you still have a more special occasion. But don't be too formal, you're going to work after all, not to a party.

It is true that clothes are welcome, but it is even more important how you will behave. Be friendly, smile, try not to show that you are actually worried. (Tell yourself you'll like them - the so-called prophecy of acceptance helps with success.) Force yourself to restrain yourself if you're the type of person who, under pressure, starts talking a lot or seems to act arrogant.

You will show that you are willing to put your best foot forward by asking questions of your line manager and colleagues. Think about what in advance so that you don't sound bored and look unprepared, but demonstrate that you want to explore the new environment. This is the surest way to make a good impression.

"How are you" is a trite question, but it is a common form of politeness. It won't hurt you to ask. The answers will probably also be banal, but showing interest can be a plus in the eyes of your supervisor and colleagues.

"How can I help" sounds better than "What should I do", although in practice it means the same thing. Since you have just started work, you will probably first need to read and sign a bunch of documents that the Human Resources staff will give you. But when you ask for work instead of waiting for orders, you show good ethics.

It is very likely that the boss already has specific tasks for you. Dealing with them will help you adapt. Doing something is less stressful than sitting anxiously looking around while colleagues around you work.

"What is the preferred method of communication" is a necessary question to the boss and colleagues. It will help you avoid misunderstandings. You will make a bad impression if you go to a manager who prefers to receive information by email. Emailing a manager who is not in the habit of reading their mail will be a waste of time, if not worse.

It is also good to find out in which cases your boss wants written communication, in which - phone conversations, in which - meetings. Even if you don't like the boss's habits, it's clear that you have to adapt to them.

Research what are the accepted ways of communication between employees in different departments of the company and between people on the team. In this way, you will interact effectively from the beginning, and you will gradually understand the peculiarities of some colleagues. There's always at least one person who doesn't read their emails, and if you want to get your work done, you have to call them or have a live chat with them.

"Who are the people I need to meet in the coming days" is an essential question, especially if you work in a large company and your job involves interaction with other departments. Establishing business contacts is critical to your success right from the start. The other benefit is that by getting to know colleagues from other departments and possibly their managers, you'll get a better idea of the company and your place in the bigger picture.

It's smart to ask your boss for advice on the people you absolutely need to meet, because that way you show him that you value his opinion.

By asking, "What should my goals be for the next month," you demonstrate long-term thinking. This conversation with your boss helps you clarify your priorities and focus on the most important tasks.

If you feel that the boss is not ready to give you an answer, in the next moment you can rephrase the question as "What are the tasks and goals of the team for the next month". Your manager should be aware of both them and your specific place in them - after all, you are not falling from the sky and he has thought about what he will assign you to work on.

21.08.2024

FINANCIAL ADVICE FOR YOUTHS - HOW TO INVEST IN YOUR 20S?

For most people, the twenties are an exciting decade with many important decisions to be made, both personally and financially. Follow up, study or work, travel, wedding, first car and maybe even own home.

With so many exciting adventures and changes happening, not many young people think big about the future. Or about the accumulation of wealth when the dreams are big and the salary is still modest.

After reaching adulthood, it's never too early to start sorting out your own finances and making your first investments. It is important for young people to know what to pay attention to when they are "walking through" investing.

The right balance between chance and risk

Myths and (supposedly) safe advice about stocks or the perfect portfolio hover around building wealth at an early age. A portfolio consists of different asset classes. Stocks can generate high returns, but they are also subject to fluctuations. Bonds are considered a relatively stable investment, but in the current market environment they achieve low and sometimes even negative returns. Each asset class has different advantages and disadvantages. That's why it's important to balance between different values to find the asset allocation that fits your financial style and lifestyle.

Many financial advisors recommend portfolios based on the 100 minus age rule. This means that a 20-year-old should invest 80% of his savings in stocks and 20% in bonds. For an 80-year-old, the allocation is reversed: 80% invested in conservative bonds and only 20% in stocks. There is a grain of truth in this rule. Long-term investments are considered less risky because short-term price fluctuations can simply be paid out. And with the compound interest effect, even small sums can turn into a significant fortune over time.

So let time work for you. But even when you're young, you need to differentiate between different investment goals and create different portfolios for them—even in your 20s. Do you have a lot of plans? Then don't put everything on one card when investing.

Young people who are just entering the world of adults at full throttle often do not yet have very concrete plans for life. So how and what precautions should you take? Although each case is unique, there are a few rules of investing and financial advice that always work:

  1. Take care of the emergency fund first

Anyone who falls ill or becomes unemployed gains nothing – but the cost of living continues. Therefore, the most important rule of financial education is to create an emergency fund to protect yourself from the unexpected. The money in it should cover your average expenses for 3 to 6 months.

Invest this amount conservatively and in such a way that you can access it anytime. If you still don't have enough for your 'safety net', you can, for example, save through an exchange-traded fund (ETF) savings plan. It provides an opportunity to save and invest simultaneously with small amounts every month that are invested in mutual funds.

  1. Invest early in retirement insurance

Successful investments often start inefficiently. This is because compound interest takes time for your money to grow. The long investment period is ideal, because even with small initial amounts, a small (and why not a large) fortune develops in the long term.

Those of you who invest time and stay calm will be rewarded with decent stock market gains. Young people are often impatient, but remember that patience pays off. Since your retirement date is more than 40 years in the future, your money has plenty of time to multiply. Take advantage of this and start long-term retirement insurance as early as possible, for example through a passive savings plan on an ETF.

  1. Consider medium-term goals as well

A safety net protects you in the short term, a mutual fund savings plan allows your retirement benefits to grow - but there's more to the grain. Consider your medium-term plans and goals and make provisions with different portfolios.

Set savings goals such as travel, starting a home and family, and determine which strategy will most successfully get you to your goal. It is best to divide your investments into several portfolios - this is the most sensible way to take advantage of the opportunities of the world markets.

  1. Diversify, but not too much

You will come across diversification as you learn the basics of investing. There are countless articles that offer advice on how and why to diversify. However, you should also familiarize yourself with the effects of "diworsification," a term coined by Wall Street trader Peter Lynch for the negative consequences of excessive diversification.

It is important to know that diversification does not guarantee profit without loss, it is simply a strategy to balance the risk associated with investing. According to experts, a successful portfolio ideally has between 25 and 30 stocks.

Effective diversification of your portfolio will be achieved by balancing your investments, spreading them among multiple assets. Some asset classes are high risk with high profit potential, while others are low risk with little profit potential. Using a mix of assets gives you relatively good security.

Greater diversification does not always equal minimized risk. In fact, over-diversification limits the potential of your investments so much that it can negatively impact your investments. This is called over-diversification. Success, as usual, lies in the "golden mean".

20.08.2024

ON THE NEW ALTERNATIVE TAX ON THE INCOME OF NATURAL PERSONS, WHO ARE NOT TRADERS, FROM THE COLLECTION OF WILD MUSHROOMS AND BERRIES

 

Comment from the specialist

Evgeniya Popova, tax expert

 

From 01.01.2024, a new alternative tax was introduced, with which the income of natural persons who are not traders within the meaning of the Commercial Law from the collection of wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of medicinal plants, is taxed.

This is a completely new type of tax, the introduction of which has given rise to various discussions, and there are also many opponents of the idea of ​​its existence, and even a proposal for its abolition. It is a question of income from a specific seasonal activity, which also implies the possession of specific knowledge, but at the same time very profitable, given the prices of certain types of mushrooms such as truffles, the income from the sale of which falls within this scope.

Of course, there is no predictability in the amount of income that could be realized from this activity, since production largely depends on specific factors and atmospheric conditions such as rainfall, drought and other climatic features. Therefore, paying tax as a fixed amount that does not depend on the actual amount of income earned is something subjective, but practice shows that over the years there are other types of similar taxes that replace income tax and their amount is not affected by the amount of the acquired income - for example, the patent tax.

It is very important to note that this tax regime does not apply to persons who act as traders - for example, an individual is not registered as a sole trader, but systematically performs the activity by occupation.

Another important feature of taxation with this type of alternative tax under the Personal Income Tax Act is that the obligation to pay the tax is on another person - the state-owned enterprises under the Forestry Act, and not on the payers of the income - the companies that buy the collected produce.

The new alternative tax is included in the provision of Art. 14, para. 6 of the Law on taxes on the income of natural persons, according to which the income of natural persons, who are not traders within the meaning of the Commercial Law, from the collection of wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from medicinal plants, is subject to an alternative tax, and in part three of the Personal Income Tax Act there is a new chapter seven "a" with the title "Alternative tax on income from gathering wild mushrooms and fruits".

The basis for taxation of the income from collecting wild mushrooms and fruits is in Art. 41a of the Law on Personal Income Taxes, where in para. 1, it is stated that the income of natural persons, who are not traders within the meaning of the Commercial Law, from the collection of wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from medicinal plants, are taxed once with an alternative tax in the amount of BGN 30 for each month in which the activity is carried out.

In para. 2 of this provision states that the alternative tax for the income from gathering wild mushrooms and fruits is withheld from the state enterprises under Art. 163, para. 1 of the Law on Forests immediately before the issuance of a permit for carrying out the activity of collecting wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from medicinal plants, for the relevant month and is submitted within the terms and in accordance with the procedure of Art. 65 and 66 of the Personal Income Tax Act.

Therefore, the alternative tax under Art. 41a of the Law on Personal Income Taxes shall be submitted by state-owned enterprises under Art. 163, para. 1 of the Law on Forests, by the 25th of the month following the month of its withholding in the state budget, at the expense of the competent territorial directorate of the National Revenue Agency under Art. 8 of the Tax and Insurance Procedural Code, i.e. at the place of registration of the person obliged to withhold the alternative tax.

It should be borne in mind that an alternative tax, which taxes the income from collecting wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from medicinal plants, in the amount of BGN 30 is due only for the month during which the activity is carried out and pay before receiving the permit, i.e. before the start of the activity that will be carried out in the relevant month.

As was specified above, the responsibility for the collection and payment of the alternative tax is the state-owned enterprises - legal entities, with the status of state-owned enterprises under Art. 62, para. 3 of the Commercial Law. The Minister of Agriculture and Food, by order, determines the areas of activity of these state-owned enterprises.

State enterprises under the Law on Forests are:

– North-West State Enterprise;

– North Central State Enterprise;

– Northeast State Enterprise;

– Southeast State Enterprise;

– Southwest State Enterprise;

– South Central State Enterprise.

State enterprises that issue a permit for a specific month withhold, declare and pay both the alternative tax and the mandatory insurance contributions.

For the alternative tax due under Art. 41a of the Law on Personal Income Taxes, state-owned enterprises submit information in the order and manner specified in an ordinance issued by the Minister of Finance, i.e. in accordance with Ordinance H-13 of 17.12.2019 with declaration model No. 1 and No. 6, which is laid down in the provision of Art. 55, para. 3 of the Law on Personal Income Taxes. In practice, state-owned enterprises submit a declaration, but it contains information only about the amount of tax due and mandatory insurance contributions for the specific persons, but not about the amount of income acquired by them - the amount of tax under Art. 41a of the Personal Income Tax Act is indicated in 31.A in declaration form 1, and the code is 41. In declaration form 6 in item 16 "withheld tax under Art. 41a of the Law on Personal Income Taxes" the amount of tax withheld during the relevant month under Art. 41a.

According to the Law on Forests, a permit for the use of non-timber forest products from the forest territories - state and municipal property, is issued by the state enterprise under Art. 163 for each month in the month before the performance of the activity, and its value includes:

  1. the price for the use of non-timber forest products from state and municipally owned forest territories;
  2. insurance contributions according to Art. 4a1 of the Social Security Code;
  3. health insurance contributions according to Art. 40, para. 1 of the Health Insurance Act;
  4. alternative tax according to the order of chapter seven "a" of the Law on personal income taxes.

And in the Law on Forests, it is explicitly stated that the state enterprise under Art. 163, which issues a permit for a specific month, deducts, declares and pays the mandatory insurance contributions under para. 6, items 2 and 3, as well as the alternative tax under para. 6, item 4;

It is important to keep in mind that this regime does not apply to medicinal plants, within the meaning of § 1, item 64 of the Additional Provisions of the Personal Income Tax Act. These are plants that can be used to make herbs.

For the income from this activity of natural persons who are not merchants within the meaning of the Commercial Law, taxation is reserved in accordance with Art. 29, para. 2, b. "a" of the Law on personal income taxes, whereby 40 percent of legally recognized expenses are deducted when forming the taxable income.

Individuals are not obliged to file an annual tax return when they have only acquired income taxable with an alternative tax from collecting wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from medicinal plants, according to Art. 52, para. 1, item 6 of the Law on Personal Income Taxes. Even if the persons are obliged to submit an annual tax declaration on another basis, they are not obliged to indicate in it the income from the collection of wild mushrooms and fruits, with the exception of those from the medicinal plants, subject to an alternative tax according to the order of chapter seven "a" .

However, local individuals will be able to declare in their annual tax return under Art. 50 of the Law on personal income taxes for 2024 and the incomes acquired during the year, which are taxable with an alternative tax under chapter seven "a" on the basis of art. 50a, para. 1 of the Law on Personal Income Taxes.

Example: A natural person carries out an activity of picking wild mushrooms in the period from May to October inclusive. For each month of this period, the person pays the due alternative tax in the amount of BGN 30 and the due mandatory insurance contributions to the state forestry enterprise at the beginning of of the month before acquiring the permit to carry out the activity for the corresponding month. The tax thus paid is final.

In this case, the state-owned enterprise declares this tax in accordance with Ordinance No. H-13, submitting model declarations No. 1 and No. 6.

The company that buys the production, that actually pays the income from this activity to the natural persons, has no obligation to determine and pay tax for this income, as well as to submit information with the reference under Art. 73, para. 1 of the Law on personal income taxes for the amount of income paid by him, as he had for income from gathering wild mushrooms and fruits until the end of 2023, i.e. it is no longer intended to submit information on the income thus paid by the payers from the collection of wild mushrooms and fruits.

Regarding the documentation of income, there is also no special obligation to issue a document when paying/acquiring income from collecting wild mushrooms and fruits, as a Bill for paid amounts is no longer issued.

19.08.2024

THE NEW REGULATION ON ENTRY INTO THE EMPLOYMENT REGISTER IS ALREADY A FACT

Comment from the specialist

Larisa Todorova, lawyer

In "State Gazette", no. 65 of 08/02/2024, Decree No. 267 of the Council of Ministers of July 29, 2024 on the adoption of an Ordinance on entry into the employment register (the Ordinance) was promulgated. With the decree, changes are also made to the Ordinance on the work record and work experience.

Legal delegation for the adoption of the regulation are Art. 62, para. 5 of the Labor Code and Art. 120, para. 1 of the Civil Servant Act. With the Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Labor Code, published State Gazette, no. 85 of 2023, significant changes were adopted in the two normative acts related to the regulation of the work and service record. The changes in the Labor Code come into force on June 1, 2025, and in the Civil Servant Law - on June 1, 2026.

Therefore, for labor relations, the Ordinance for entry in the employment register enters into force from June 1, 2025, and for official ones - from June 1, 2026.

The changes to the Ordinance on the employment record and work experience shall enter into force on June 1, 2025.

In order to present the regulations contained in the Ordinance, it is necessary to recall the main changes in the Labor Code and in the Civil Servant Act:

  1. Changes to the Labor Code

With the changes in the Labor Code, the obligation of employers to issue and make entries in paper work books is removed. It is regulated that when concluding, amending and terminating employment contracts, employers must enter the relevant data in the employment register (the Register). The creation of the Register has been assigned to the executive director of the National Revenue Agency, until June 1, 2025. The Register contains the electronic labor records of employees.

The unified electronic labor record is an electronic document that contains data and circumstances related to the labor activity of the worker or employee, and is an official certification document.

It is important to note that the work book, issued before June 1, 2025, is an official document certifying the circumstances related to the labor activity of the worker or employee entered in it.

The unified electronic labor record contains data on:

  1. the names of the worker or employee;
  2. the personal identifier of the worker or employee (according to § 1, item 23 of the additional provisions of the Labor Code "personal identifier" is a uniform civil number, personal number, personal number of a foreigner, service number or other identifier of a natural person, determined in law);
  3. the employer's identifier and name;
  4. the basis of the employment contract;
  5. the date of conclusion of the employment contract and the beginning of its implementation;
  6. the term of the contract, when such is agreed;
  7. the date of conclusion of additional agreements;
  8. the date and reason for termination of the employment relationship;
  9. the amount of the basic salary;
  10. the code of the position held according to the National Classification of Professions and Positions;
  11. the code of the main economic activity in which the person is employed, according to the Classification of economic activities approved by the National Statistical Institute;
  12. the code of the place of residence of the worker or employee according to the Unified Classifier of Administrative-Territorial and Territorial Units;
  13. the duration of working hours;
  14. the duration of the time that is recognized as work experience, as well as the time that is not recognized as work experience;
  15. compensation paid upon termination of the employment relationship on the basis of Art. 222, para. 2 and 3 of the Labor Code;
  16. arrest notices provided for in art. 512, para. 5 of the Civil Procedure Code;
  17. the agreed paid annual leave;
  18. the days of paid annual leave used for the year of termination of the legal relationship.

Part of the data that will be contained in the Register is data that is entered in the work book of the worker or employee according to Art. 349, para. 1 of the Labor Code (before its amendment) and data contained in the notification submitted to the National Revenue Agency pursuant to Ordinance No. 5 of December 29, 2002 on the content and order of sending the notification under Art. 62, para. 5 of the Labor Code (Ordinance No. 5 of 2002). The register will also contain other data (compensation paid upon termination of the employment relationship on the grounds expressly stated under Art. 222, paras. 2 and 3 of the Labor Code, the agreed paid annual leave and the days of used paid annual leave due for the year of termination of the legal relationship), which have a bearing on the rights of the worker or employee upon his/her employment with a subsequent employer.

With the amendments to the Labor Code, it was determined that access to the Register and the unified electronic labor record is carried out in accordance with Art. 5 of the Law on Electronic Government. Identification is required for the provision of an administrative service through the means regulated in Art. 5 of the law. The administrative bodies enter the means of electronic identification, through which citizens and organizations declare the electronic administrative services provided by them, in the Administrative Register under Art. 61 of the Administration Act.

Access to the data contained in the Register is also provided free of charge in the territorial directorates of the National Revenue Agency in accordance with the procedure determined by the Ordinance.

The processing of personal data in the Register is carried out in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons in connection with the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data and for the repeal of Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OB, L 119/1 of May 4, 2016) and the Personal Data Protection Act.

With the creation of the Employment Register, the maintenance of the Register of Employment Contracts is terminated. The initial data in the Employment Register will be filled in by the National Revenue Agency on the basis of the Register of Employment Contracts and, if necessary, on the basis of other sources.

Employers will be obliged to submit notifications for the conclusion, amendment and termination of employment contracts in accordance with Ordinance No. 5 of 2002 until June 1, 2025.

Until June 1, 2025, employers should also fulfill their obligations to enter the relevant data in the work books of employees. Until June 1, 2025, the employer's obligations under Art. 349, para. 2 of the Labor Code to issue a work book to a worker and an employee who enters work for the first time, and under Art. 350, para. 1 of the Labor Code for the entry in the employment book of the data related to the termination of the employment relationship and its transmission to the worker or employee.

The current provisions of the Labor Code regarding the employment record, the Ordinance on the employment record and work experience and Ordinance No. 5 of December 29, 2002 on the content and procedure for sending the notification under Art. 62, para. 5 of the Labor Code will continue to apply until June 1, 2025.

  1. Changes to the Civil Servant Act

With the changes in the Civil Servant Act, it was envisaged that the data on the employment relationship would be stored as part of the single electronic employment record in the Employment Register. The unified electronic employment record is an official certification document for the entered data and circumstances related to the civil service.

The service book, issued in accordance with the Civil Servant Act before June 1, 2026, is an official certification document for the circumstances related to the civil service entered in it.

The following data about the employment relationship will be entered in the Register:

  1. the names of the civil servants;
  2. the personal identifier of the civil servant;
  3. the names and identifier of the administration of the appointing authority;
  4. the basis of the act of appointment;
  5. the number and date of the act of appointment and the date of establishment of the employment relationship;
  6. the term of the act of appointment, if any;
  7. the number and date of the acts for changing the official legal relationship;
  8. the date of termination and the reason for termination of the employment relationship;
  9. the amount of the basic monthly salary;
  10. the code of the position held according to the classifier under Art. 2, para. 2 or according to the Classifier of Diplomatic Posts under Art. 42 of the Diplomatic Service Act.
  11. the code of the main economic activity in which the civil servant is employed, according to the Classification of economic activities approved by the National Statistical Institute;
  12. the code of the place of work of the civil servant according to the Unified Classifier of Administrative-Territorial and Territorial Units;
  13. the duration of working hours;
  14. the length of time that is recognized as seniority, respectively seniority in the diplomatic service;
  15. the benefits paid upon termination of the employment relationship;
  16. the rank of the civil servant, respectively the diplomatic rank;
  17. arrest notices provided for in art. 512, para. 5 of the Civil Procedure Code.

Within a period of 6 months, starting from January 1, 2026, the appointing authorities for existing employment relationships under the Law on Civil Servants shall enter in the Register all data from the service book issued pursuant to the same law, regardless of the authority that entered them in the booklet.

All data from the official records, issued in accordance with the law on the civil servant of individuals, are also entered in the cases of termination of official legal relations within the above-mentioned period.

All data from the official records issued in accordance with the Civil Servant Act to persons, except for the cases of active or terminated official legal relationships, specified above, are entered by the appointing authority when a subsequent official legal relationship occurs.

III. What does the new Ordinance for entry in the employment register provide

The Ordinance contains 3 sections - "General Provisions", "Employment Register" and "Single Electronic Labor Record", an additional provision and final provisions. There are 5 attachments to it, as follows:

  1. Appendix No. 1 to Art. 8, item 1 "Electronic labor record for concluding, amending and terminating an employment contract and for the establishment, changing and terminating of an employment relationship - (Appendix No. 1).
  2. Appendix No. 2 to Art. 8, item 1 "Electronic employment record for change of employer under Art. 123, para. 1 or under Art. 123a, para. 1 or para. 4 of the Labor Code, or of an appointing authority" - (Appendix No. 2).
  3. Appendix No. 3 to Art. 8, item 2 "Data on electronic employment record for concluding, amending, terminating and deleting an employment contract and for establishing, changing, terminating and deleting an employment relationship by the Executive Agency "General Labor Inspectorate" - (Appendix No. 3).
  4. Appendix No. 4 to Art. 9, para. 3 "Covering letter for submission of electronic labor records according to the Ordinance to be entered in the employment register - (Appendix No. 4).
  5. Appendix No. 5 to Art. 12, para. 1 "Protocol for registered and unregistered electronic labor records according to Appendix No. 1, 2 and 3 to Art. 8 of the Ordinance to be entered in the employment register - (Appendix No. 5).

15.08.2024

YOU WILL NOT BECOME A BOSS BY WAITING FOR THE BOSS SPOT

You have arranged an idyll in your head: your boss leaves or is promoted, and you rise to his place. You do not take a particular risk, because you know the work and the team perfectly, you are completely clear about the relations inside the company and with its partners outside. Sounds like an ideal career plan.

This is not a plan at all, but a big mistake, say personal and career development experts. Their arguments are ironclad, but first read a true story.

Nick Caldwell, CEO at Looker, recounts what he remembers hearing from a young man, "I'm going to take a management position until my boss leaves or another manager in the company resigns." You remembered the worst advice you received in your career.

In 2011, he worked at Microsoft and had accumulated 9 years of experience. At that time there were problems in the department. Nick started looking around and found a management position in another department of the software giant. But after 9 years in the same job in the same team, change seemed scary and risky to him.

He shared his intentions with his colleague Paul. "Stay here. There's going to be a power vacuum in the department and a number of open positions, so you'll be moving up the career ladder quickly," Paul advised. "His analysis sounded logical to me, and this option was certainly less risky for me. However, I kept asking myself if this was the way I wanted to move up. After a week of hard thought, I decided to try my luck Nick explains.

As the head of the other department, he had to work a lot, gather a team, give 150% of himself, but in the end he established himself in the position and took more steps up the hierarchy.

"Paul never left our old team. To this day he holds the same position he worked in. We keep in touch and in every conversation he always comes up with the topic of starting something new. He doesn't like the projects he's working on and he's not in a particularly good relationship with his colleagues. When I ask him why he continues in the same position, since nothing keeps him there anymore, Paul always answers me: "I'm waiting for the right opportunity. "You were lucky when you left. Sometimes I wonder what my career would have been like if I had ever followed his advice," says Nick Caldwell.

The first takeaway from this story is that you have to risk to win. "The biggest mistake you can make in your career is not making a decision you may later regret, but passing up multiple opportunities out of fear that you might fail," sums up Nick.

But not he, but Paul is the more interesting and instructive image.

And a good professional can turn out to be a career loser when he waits to take his boss's place. Especially when there are not enough real facts that indicate that this chief will soon vacate his chair for some reason.

It is completely short-sighted to base your career development plans on a coincidence and other people's decisions, experts point out. Even if you are certain that if and when these circumstances arise, you will be the one to be promoted, it is still unwise to sit and wait. Your professional success depends on your personal decisions, be proactive and look for different opportunities instead of imagining yourself in the shoes of your boss.

Waiting for someone to leave in order to ascend to the familiar betrays limited thinking. You'll likely find much better options if you look around with a desire to not just make a step up, but a change. This can put you on a fast track to an even higher and more lucrative position because you will be more creative. In the place of your boss, there is even a danger that you will end up unsuccessful, because you will do things the way you know, and this will not bring breakthrough success.

For this reason, don't be too sure that the wait is worth it, and you will definitely be put in the boss's place when he vacates it. No wonder your higher-ups decide they need someone with a new management style. Even if the company has a policy for the so-called reserves, it does not guarantee that being designated as a chief's reserve will make you the incumbent. Yes, one possible approach is to promote precisely an employee who has gone through all the steps in the hierarchy and is specially prepared for a higher position. But the other approach is to hire an outsider with a fresh view to bring new ideas, to give more speed to the work and to the team.

The plan to wait means you are afraid to step out of your professional comfort zone. It's good to be comfortable in your job, but if you want your career to be successful, you have to force yourself to step out of the comfort of the familiar more than once, personal and career development experts advise.

Especially if your ambitions don't stop at your current boss, but you want to go further, don't get into bad habits. If this is your strategy, after becoming the head of the department, how many more years will it take for the next position in the hierarchy to become vacant?! Patience is a great quality, but it can't be endless, because at some point it will still be time for you to retire.

True, an ancient Chinese wisdom says "If you stand long enough on the bank of the river, sooner or later you will see the corpses of your enemies flowing down the river". But in it, Sun Tzu does not say that you stand and do nothing. Perhaps the wisdom of Albert Einstein is clearer: "Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you have to keep moving."

So inject some passion, make a long-term plan of what you want to achieve in your profession, don't be afraid to take on challenges and try every opportunity that opens up.

Leaping into the unknown can be a success, it can be a failure, there is always risk. But if you think it through and it's worth it, take it.

It is no less dangerous to wait - there is a chance that competition will suddenly appear. A colleague may come into your department, roughly at your level in experience and ability, who has taken the risk of starting at a new company. No wonder, in the sublime moment, he is judged to be more suitable than you for a boss, at least because he is more daring and ambitious.

As Abraham Lincoln said, "Good things come to those who wait, but only what is left of those who hurry."

--- The risk of leading the familiar ---

Success is often more certain if you accept a challenge to become the head of another department or company instead of where you worked in a lower position.

One of the pitfalls of familiarity is that you don't realize exactly what's happening to you. And that is that you have not just been promoted, but that you are already doing something completely different.

The step between executive and leader is huge because it implies a complete change in what you do - to think strategically, to set goals, to organize and inspire the team to fulfill them, to control their performance and the result.

You probably know all this in theory, you have the abilities and qualities, you are prepared to do it. In practice, it will be easier for you in a new place, because you will not be weighed down by habits from your previous existence as a rank-and-file employee.

You finally sit down in the boss's chair, but get bogged down in the so-called micromanaging. You take on some of your old duties alone, confident that you can do the job best. You're looking for an error in accounting documents or a bug in a software product, writing an article, or treating patients yourself instead of being the team leader your job requires.

If two positions could be combined into one, it is certain that the superiors would merge them. If they are not, you should focus on your new features and not confuse them with your old ones. Which is always easier in a new place than in an old one.

An advantage of becoming the head of another department or company is that you are not leading colleagues with whom you were equal yesterday. There is usually a slight discomfort from this. And it becomes even more difficult when there are one or two people in the team who do not understand (or pretend not to understand) the current position in the hierarchy and you have to remind them who is who.

14.08.2024

HOW DO I ENSURE EARLY RETIREMENT WITHOUT RELYING ON THE STATE PENSION SYSTEM?

Early retirement is a dream of many people. Everyone has heard stories of people who managed to accumulate wealth before they were 50-60 years old and even before they turned 40 and retired early. However, these stories sound to us more like they were taken out of a movie than from the reality around us.

Under the pressure of a hectic daily life, between the costs of a home, bills, food, children and what not, most people cannot imagine that early retirement is possible. But with a good plan, early retirement beyond what the law provides is not only possible, but even easily achievable.

In order to achieve early retirement, by saving and not paying the pension insurance provided by law, you need to take three very simple steps, advises the economist and lecturer at the Finance Academy, Georgi Vuldjev.

First, you must decide to take your financial future into your own hands.

This means not relying solely on the state pension system to provide for your old age. This decision seems more difficult than it really is. The reality is that our current pension system is not sustainable in the long term. The likelihood of people who are in the early stages of their working careers getting a decent pension from the state is not particularly high.

So anyway, it is highly recommended that everyone save separately, apart from the money that is withdrawn monthly for pension insurance.

Of course, you should be aware that early retirement means a lower state pension. But that shouldn't bother you. First, it's low anyway, and second, if you plan your savings correctly, you'll accumulate enough money that it won't matter.

The second step is to start saving!

This is also the most important step. It is easy to implement with good income and expenditure planning.

Think of your personal life as a business. Because every business and every person has income and expenses. Good businesses are those that make a profit, i.e. whose revenues are higher than costs. And the best invest their profits. These are the businesses that achieve the fastest growth and dominate their sector.

This is exactly what each one of us should do - to make a profit, that is, savings, in our personal life, which we can invest for the purpose of financial growth!

First and foremost, it means doing everything you can to maximize your earnings. This aspect of personal finance is highly individual, depending on what your education and professional qualifications are. Keep in mind that they can always improve! Seek to acquire new knowledge in areas that have direct applicability to your professional life. Second comes the cost.

Maximizing revenue alone will do nothing if we don't control our costs. Appetite does come with eating, and this is especially true in the realm of personal finance. If you don't plan your savings, they won't come by themselves, even if you have a high income. Therefore, first of all, you should start tracking your expenses, prioritize the most important ones and save on the less important ones.

By maximizing income and minimizing expenses, you will begin to accumulate savings. The simple math shows that with an adequate level of savings, early retirement is a completely achievable goal. At a minimum, each of us should save 10% of our net income, and for early retirement purposes, it is highly recommended that the level be 20%, and even more if possible.

By saving 20% of your income and investing that money in such a way that it yields an average of 8% return per year (which is totally achievable) for up to 20 years you will be able to generate a retirement income equal to 80% of your professional income that you have saved from over the years. This is a very high level of income replacement that no pension system can guarantee you.

The stated return is not some unattainable goal. For example, over the past 20 years, the average return on the SP500 stock index has been around 10%. That is, if in 1991 someone started investing 20% of his income, in 2021 he would have reached the goal of retirement after 20 years of savings.

Of course, "early" retirement requires saving early. In investing, the most valuable resource is time, and the more time you have, the more you can achieve as an investor. It is therefore highly recommended that saving for early retirement starts early in one's career – someone in their 50s is not yet in a position to save and invest for early retirement. Someone 25 years old or even 35 years old, however, is.

Early retirement is completely achievable for every single person, as long as he puts in the necessary effort and, of course, has the necessary knowledge. This includes knowledge about how to manage our personal finances and save, and how to invest those savings as wisely as possible.

The investment and personal finance program at Finance Academy Bulgaria is aimed at helping people learn to save and invest effectively, with the aim of achieving long-term financial security.

08.08.2024

SUCCESS DOESN'T LIKE IF. IMAGINE IT IN "TOWEL TIED"

The first condition to win is to enter the game. But the bitter truth of life is that not everyone who plays wins. New research suggests what else you can do to grab the prize.

Big bet - big stress

You have an important project to present or report to your superiors and colleagues. The stake is high - it depends on your persuasiveness whether the work done will be evaluated as a success. From this assessment follows a reward for you - a higher salary, a bonus, a promotion.

Of course you are tense. You are even afraid that you might fail in the performance. Then the enormous efforts you have made for a long time will remain unappreciated and unrewarded. This uncertainty is able to fail even the most capable professional. Especially if he is one of those people who are not very played and charming in public appearances.

Therefore, scientists and specialists in applied psychology do not stop looking for techniques for success - how to make yourself exert maximum effort in the event of a big bet and at the same time control stress so that it does not sabotage you.

An American study gives interesting results, and based on them, psychologists offer useful tips on how to manipulate your mind.

A bird in the hand and an eagle in the sky

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine observed volunteers who were assigned to solve computer problems. Their success always led to cash prizes, and the situations changed.

In the first round, scientists acted according to a scenario familiar from life. With each subsequent task, the amount to be won increased. And surprise - the tasks did not become more difficult, but nevertheless the performance of the participants worsened. The reason is that the mechanism was involved in which the big bet led to high tension and then to little success.

Similar results are known from a lot of research, and everyone knows from their own experience that overextending to grab the prize often ends in failure.

American researchers, however, turned the point of view. In the second round, when solving each subsequent task, the participants were not supposed to earn more money. The bet was different - to keep what they had already won. After this change in condition, they began to make significantly fewer errors than in the first part of the study with the escalating sums.

After analyzing the achieved results, the researchers organized a new experiment. Its purpose was to test whether participants would achieve better results if they learned to change the way they viewed high stakes.

There was no initial task at all, the solution of which earned a cash prize. The scientists made the volunteers only imagine that they had already won it. Now their only job is to save her.

The results of the experiment were conclusive - and only with suggestion, the participants did significantly better with the tasks than in the situation with the escalating sums.

"Our research shows that you can reduce the negative impact of stress at work by reframing the way you look at high stakes," the scientists commented.

Two psychological factors seem to be involved here. On the one hand, a person feels less tense, thinking that the prize he is trying to win is already his. On the other hand, his will becomes stronger when he can lose something he already has than when he imagines something he can gain. One is real, the other is highly desired but imaginary. Something of that philosophy expressed by the saying "Better a bird in the hand than an eagle in the sky". Some practicality works, but to get there you must first stretch your imagination to self-manipulate.

Self-suggestion with a limit, though

The technique of imagining the prize in order to get excited and put effort into achieving it has been known for a long time. What is new in the American study, however, is that you have to stretch your imagination in a different direction - not to "if" and "when", but to something "tied in a towel".

If you think that the prize you are trying to win is already yours and that it depends on your current efforts to be able to keep it, you will be successful, psychologists assure.

You should notice the key point in this sentence - your self-suggestion should not go so far as to stop you from making an effort. Its purpose is to remove your fears and tensions, to increase your self-confidence, so that it does not prevent you from presenting yourself in the best way. However, if you decide that the victory has really been achieved and start lazing around, there will be no point in your psychological exercise, experts warn.

07.08.2024

PUNISHMENTS IN THE WORKPLACE: REAL EXAMPLES AND LESSONS FROM PRACTICE

In the work process, discipline is essential to maintain order and efficiency. The law in Bulgaria provides for certain violations of labor discipline, for which employers have the right to apply disciplinary penalties.

Unfortunately, the imposition of disciplinary punishments, which are used as a tool to resolve personal conflicts and control unhealthy relationships between employee and employer, is still abused in Bulgaria. In general, this type of punishment has a completely different purpose to be regulated by legislation.

Discipline in the workplace is an essential element for maintaining order and efficiency in the work environment. The imposition of penalties for violations of labor discipline aims to ensure that workers fulfill their duties and comply with the organization's rules and procedures. Strict adherence to work discipline often results in higher productivity and more efficient use of work time. In some theories, it is believed that workers who are accustomed to certain standards and rules are more likely to work more efficiently.

Uncontrolled disciplinary violations can have a negative effect on the business, including loss of productivity, negative impact on the image of a company, including financial losses. The imposition of penalties is intended to prevent and correct such situations.

Some disciplinary infractions, such as failure to follow safety rules, can put workers' health and safety at risk. Penalties serve to ensure compliance with these rules and to protect the working environment.

According to the law, violations that may lead to disciplinary sanctions are the following:

  1. Being late, leaving work early, not showing up for work or not compacting working hours:

Example: A worker or employee is frequently late to work without providing a reasonable explanation or supporting document. This breach causes workflow disruption and can affect team productivity.

  1. The employee's or employee's appearance at work in a condition that prevents him from performing his assigned tasks:

Example: A worker or employee comes to work in an intoxicated state and cannot perform his responsibilities. This type of violation can lead to serious or even dangerous situations in the workplace.

  1. Non-fulfillment of the assigned work, non-compliance with technical and technological rules:

Example: A worker or employee does not follow established procedures when working with complex equipment. This type of violation can lead to danger to the life and health of workers, as well as to technical problems and loss of time and resources.

  1. Production of low-quality products:

Example: A worker or employee does not strictly follow the quality standards in the production of a product. This type of violation leads to a loss of company reputation and possible claims by customers.

  1. Failure to comply with the rules for health and safety at work:

Example: A worker or employee does not wear the prescribed protective equipment when working with hazardous substances. Such a violation can lead to serious health problems and even legal prosecutions.

  1. Failure to comply with the legal orders of the employer:

Example: A worker or employee refuses to follow clearly stated instructions from management. This type of breach makes the internal functioning of the organization difficult.

  1. Abuse of trust and damage to the good name of the enterprise, as well as dissemination of confidential information about it:

Example: A worker or employee spreads through the company's official communication channels false rumors about the company and the management, which may lead to damage to the company's reputation and loss of markets.

  1. Damage to the employer's property and waste of materials, raw materials, energy and other means:

Example: A worker or employee does not follow the rules for the use of equipment, which leads to frequent breakdowns and unnecessary repair costs.

  1. Non-fulfilment of other labor obligations provided for in laws and other normative acts, in the rules for the internal labor regulations, in the collective labor agreement or determined at the origin of the employment relationship.

Example: A worker or employee ignores new legal provisions related to the protection of personal data of customers, which can lead to legal problems for the company.

Using these examples, employers can more easily understand and apply disciplinary sanctions when violations of labor discipline occur in their organizations.

 

Reference:

Art. 187, art. 188, art. 194, Art. 193, Art. 221 of the Labor Code