11.11.2022
THE NEWLY UNEMPLOYED ARE TWICE AS MANY AS THOSE WHO HAVE STARTED WORK
Newly registered unemployed across the country in the last week of October were twice as many as those who started work through the labor offices. The new unemployed are 4,839, while those employed after registration are 2,407 people.
From the beginning of the year until now, there are just over 213,000 people registered at the Labor Offices, and 142,500 people who have entered work.
In the last monitored week from October 24 to 30, the most newly registered people were in the Plovdiv region - 489 people and in Blagoevgrad - 405, followed by the capital Sofia - 396.
In this period, the largest number of people started working in the capital - 298 people, and in Plovdiv - 193. The data from the monitoring of the labor market indicate that last month the largest number of newly registered persons were in the period from October 3rd to 9th - 8,607 people. At that time, 3,806 people found a living.
10.11.2022
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WILL RECEIVE AIDS UNDER A NEW ORDER
A draft Methodology for assessing the needs of high-tech aids for people with permanent disabilities is proposed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, uploaded for public discussion. These are devices such as the OrCam MyEye device (advanced technology to assist the blind or visually impaired), screen reader software for visually impaired computer users, a portable braille computer or display, a verticalizing electric wheelchair, etc.
It is envisaged that the evaluation and selection of the candidates to use the high-tech means will be done through the social assistance system in the country, and for this purpose, evaluation commissions will be created at the district level to carry out the administrative processes related to ensuring access to the necessary high-tech aids from the moment the support is requested until it is directed to the actual provision. An Advisory Commission for the provision of such funds to the Social Assistance Agency will also be established to provide methodological assistance to the evaluation commissions. The agency should announce the procedure for the selection of the project candidates, containing the necessary information and documents required for the application.
Eligible target groups will be people with permanent disabilities who have declared a need for the provision of high-tech aids (children and adults of working age), regardless of whether they are students, employed, unemployed, economically inactive, in case they have not received financial support to satisfy of a need for the specific aid by an institution operating with public funds.
The assessment is voluntary and will be prepared if the person with a permanent disability requests it.
The assessment will be carried out by categories (codes) described in the "Activities and Participation" and "Environmental Factors" sections of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. An innovative way of measuring the need and usefulness of providing a given high-tech aid is introduced by calculating the Coefficient of Limited Functionality and Workability and the Coefficient of Utility of the corresponding high-tech aid, in accordance with generally recognized tools and methods in the field.
People in need of an aid must submit an application form for assessment to the Regional Directorate of Social Assistance in the relevant area at the current address of the person with a permanent disability. Documents may be submitted in person, by certified mail (return receipt requested) via a licensed postal operator, or electronically.
The assessment request is prepared at the request of the person with a permanent disability or a person authorized by him; the parent (adoptive), guardian or custodian of the person with a permanent disability; a person entrusted with the care of a child with a disability pursuant to Art. 26 of the Child Protection Act; the head of the social or integrated health and social service for residential care that uses a child with a permanent disability.
A TEMC or NEMC decision, a written assignment of a qualified medical specialist or a person with appropriate professional qualifications, which defines the specific design characteristics of the product and its intended use by a specific patient, is attached to the evaluation application.
09.11.2022
WHAT HAPPENS TO UNUSED LEAVE UNTIL THE END OF THE YEAR?
How much of our paid annual leave can we carry over to next year and can we lose some unused days this year?
The basic rule is that paid annual leave is used in the calendar year for which it is claimed. However, he can postpone a part of it, but he cannot postpone its use indefinitely. The reason is that there is a two-year statute of limitations for vacations. This means that if you haven't used your leave two years after the year it was for, you lose those days.
The statute of limitations begins to run from the following year for which the leave is taken. For example, until the end of 2022, the last days you have left from 2020 can be used. The statute of limitations stops for the period in which the worker or employee uses another type of leave - for pregnancy and childbirth, for childcare, etc.
Workers and employees who have not reached the age of 18, and mothers with children up to the age of 7, use their vacation in the summer, and at their request - at other times of the year, except in cases where the employer has the right to provide them with paid annual leave leave without their consent.
The employer is obliged to grant paid annual leave to the worker or employee until the end of the relevant calendar year, unless its use is postponed in accordance with Art. 176 (art. 173, para. 5, ex. 2 LC). In case of postponement under Art. 176 LC, the worker or employee is guaranteed the use of not less than half of the paid annual leave due to him for the calendar year (Art. 173, para. 5, ex. 3 LC).
Paid annual leave must be used, it cannot be compensated with monetary compensation, except upon termination of the employment relationship. Upon termination of the employment contract, the employee has the right to monetary compensation for the unused paid annual leave, the right to which has not been extinguished by statute of limitations.
As of 17.07.2015, the obligation for employers to approve a schedule for the use of paid annual leave by December 31 of the previous calendar year has ceased to exist.
For this reason, the provisions regulating the manner and order of use, as well as the postponement of the use of paid annual leave for the next calendar year, have also been amended. The method of using the paid annual leave is regulated in Art. 172 of the Labor Code.
The paid annual leave is used by the employee all at once or in parts, and the law does not determine how many parts the paid annual leave can be used. Therefore, the leave can be divided into parts during use, without a minimum amount limit.
09.11.2022
FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WILL RISE BY 22% IN 2023
"Financial support for 670,000 people with disabilities will increase by 22% in 2023. Its increase is dictated by the caretaker government's decision to raise the value of the official poverty line in the country, which will rise from BGN 413 to BGN 504". This was said by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labor and Social Policy Lazar Lazarov, who presented the measures taken by the office to support people from vulnerable groups during a parliamentary blitz control.
The specific amount of financial support for different groups of people with disabilities is determined as a percentage of the poverty line for the respective year. For example, for people with more than 90% degree of disability with certain foreign assistance, who receive a social disability pension, it will reach BGN 287.28.
Minister Lazarov emphasized that the caretaker government has also taken a measure to increase the number of people who use targeted subsidies for heating. It is expected that around 310,000 people and families will receive assistance of BGN 623.55, which is BGN 100 more than in the previous winter season. Another 50,000 will additionally receive a one-time aid of BGN 400.
"In order to provide wood at preferential prices for those in need of the state forestry farms, we signed an agreement with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agency for Social Assistance," recalled Deputy Prime Minister Lazar Lazarov.
He added that the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy has launched the Program for Food and Basic Material Support (2021-2027), thereby providing an opportunity for municipalities to continue providing the "Hot Lunch" service to more than 70,000 people non-stop during the winter months.
Minister Lazarov emphasized that with the submitted draft law to extend the state budget from 2022, the caretaker government guarantees that no reduction of pensions and no social payment will be allowed.
08.11.2022
BULGARIANS EXPECT LAYOFFS
In October, the general indicator of consumer confidence in Bulgaria decreased by 0.6 points compared to July, which is entirely due to the reduced confidence among the population in cities, the National Statistical Institute reported.
Regarding unemployment in the country in the next twelve months, pessimism is growing, with the opinions of the population from both cities and villages shifting towards more negative expectations.
Estimates of the change in consumer prices over the last twelve months are less favorable than the opinions expressed three months earlier (increase in the balance indicator by 2.2 points). At the same time, however, their inflation expectations for the next twelve months are less pronounced.
In October, a greater proportion of consumers assessed the economic situation as unfavorable for saving. Their attitude is also negative regarding spending on durable goods, buying a car, buying or building a home (cottage), and home improvements in the next twelve months.
According to users' assessments, the general economic situation in the country over the last twelve months has slightly worsened compared to the previous observation, as a result of which the balance indicator decreased by 3.5 points. The expectations of those living in the cities are that this trend will continue in the next twelve months, in contrast to the population in the villages, who are less negative compared to three months earlier.
With regard to the financial situation of households, in the last twelve months, a decrease in pessimism has been observed in the assessments of those living in cities, while the opinions of the population in the villages are more reserved compared to the previous survey. At the same time, the forecasts of both urban and rural consumers for the next twelve months are more favorable, as a result of which the overall balance indicator increases by 2.7 points.
07.11.2022
WHAT KIND OF EMPLOYEES IS THE CLASSIFIEDS BUSINESS LOOKING FOR?
The number of job advertisements in October decreased by 7% compared to the previous September. This is shown by the monthly analysis of the HR company and career site JobTiger. Offers were down 3,000 at the end of the month, bringing the total to just over 45,500. The number of listings was down in almost every sector, with the only exception being the Accounting, Auditing, Finance sector.
The reported decline in listings is not yet a cause for concern or sentiment about a deteriorating economic environment. On an annual basis, the number of ads is 5% higher than in October 2021 (2,000 more ads). On the other hand, the seasonality of the labor market must be taken into account. Traditionally, in recent years, there has been a decline in offers precisely in the last quarter, and every year it is in the range of 3,000 - 4,000 less listings.
The number of offers decreased the most in the sectors "Trade and Sales" (815 offers less, 7% decrease), "Hospitality and Restaurant" (800 offers less, 13% decline) and "Manufacturing" (365 offers less, 5% decline). They are followed by the sectors "Construction" (280 offers less, 11% decline), "IT" (210 offers less, 5% decline), "Marketing and advertising" (150 offers less, 9% decline), "Logistics & Transport" (130 offers less, 3% decline), "Administrative & Service Activities" (120 offers less, 3% decline) and "Healthcare & Pharmacy" (60 offers less, 3% decline).
An increase in advertisements was observed only in the "Accounting, audit, finance" sector, with the number of offers in it being 90 more (4% growth) compared to the previous month.
On an annual basis, however, there are more offers in almost all sectors.
As in September, a decline compared to 2021 was observed in the "IT" sector. The offers in it are 2000 less than in October 2021 - a drop of as much as 26%. We note again that this trend can be interpreted, on the one hand, with the normalization of the demand for personnel in this sector after the active "restocking" in the pandemic years 2020 and 2021, and on the other - the announced temporary "freeze" of the selection of personnel (hire freeze) in the industry from a number of technological companies in the country and around the world.
Share distribution
The "Trade and Sales" sector continues to have the largest share of offers with 23%, followed by the "Manufacturing" (16%) and "IT" (13%) sectors.
After the constant decline of advertisements in the "Hospitality and restaurant industry" sector, in October it moved to 4th place with a 12% share, followed by the sectors "Administrative and service activities" (11%), "Logistics and transport" ( 10%), "Construction" (5.2%), "Accounting, Auditing, Finance" (4.8%), "Health & Pharmacy" (4%), "Marketing & Advertising" (3%) and "Art " (1%).
Work from home
Offers for work from home and/or telecommuting are also fewer in October. Their number decreased by about 170 (down 3%), bringing the total to just over 4,850 or 12.5% of all listings.
As a breakdown by sector, 62% of this type of offer is in the "IT" sector, followed by "Administrative and service activities" (16%), the outsourcing (BPO) industry sectors (14%) and "Trade and sales" (6% ).
Offer by city
The total number of advertisements in the leading regional cities decreased by 4%. In each of them we observe a decline as follows: Sofia (-1%), Plovdiv (-4%), Varna (-11%), Burgas (-15%), Ruse (-4%) and Stara Zagora (- 9%).
The number of proposals as share distribution is: Sofia (47%), Plovdiv (10%), Varna (8%), Burgas (3%), Ruse (3%) and Stara Zagora (2%).
Ads suitable for refugees
The number of job postings suitable for refugees fell by 12% in October, or about 300 fewer offers. The total number of this type of ads is about 2100 - 5% share of all ads.
A key period for the labor market in 2022 will be the last quarter of the year (October - December), with the expectation being to see a more unconventional decline in job offers. Although the results of the analysis for the month of October are not positive, for the moment there is still no dynamics in the number of advertisements outside of the traditional for this period, and it cannot be considered that there are specific reasons for alarm. Nevertheless, a number of employers around the world and in Bulgaria are increasingly actively taking measures to meet a challenging economic situation in the coming months - shrinking budgets, partially or completely freezing the selection of new staff and even, in some places, releasing employees, etc.
04.11.2022
BULGARIA IS THIRD IN THE EU IN TERMS OF THE SHARE OF CHILDREN AT RISK OF POVERTY
In 2021, in the European Union, residents under the age of 18 who were at risk of poverty or social exclusion represented 24.4 percent of all in this age group. At the same time, this share among the adult population of the Union was 21.1 percent, according to the latest data of the European statistical agency Eurostat.
Among the EU member states, last year the highest share of minors at risk of poverty or social exclusion was registered in Romania (41.5 percent), Spain (33.4 percent) and Bulgaria (33 percent). At the other end of the scale, the countries with the lowest such shares among their minor citizens are Slovenia (11 per cent), Finland (13.2 per cent) and the Czech Republic (13.3 per cent).
The data show that in Bulgaria 33 percent of minors were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2021. Thus, the country occupies the third place among the EU countries with the largest share of minors exposed to such a risk. This share among the adult population was 31.4 percent. The two indicators represent about 400 thousand minors and about 1,794 million adult Bulgarians, respectively. In both age groups, women were more at risk, with 204,000 girls under 18 at similar risk, as were 1.006 million adult women.
In 2020, the share of Bulgarian minors at risk of poverty or social exclusion reached 36.2 percent, with which Bulgaria was in second place (after Romania with 40.7 percent) among the member states with the largest such share. Again in 2020, the share of adult Bulgarians at risk of poverty was 33.1 percent.
In 18 of the 27 member states last year, minors were at a higher risk of poverty or social exclusion than adults. The largest differences in the indicators covering the two age groups were registered in Luxembourg (10.5 percentage points), Romania (8.7 pp), Spain and Austria (6.8 pp for each), as in each of the listed levels of endangered minors exceeds that of adults.
By contrast, in 9 EU countries, adults were at a higher risk of poverty or social exclusion than minors: Latvia, Estonia, Denmark, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Finland and Poland. The largest differences between the two age groups among these 9 countries were observed in Latvia (7.4 pp), Estonia (6.0 pp) and Denmark (4.0 pp).
The EU has set itself the goal of reducing the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion by at least 15 million by the end of the decade, of which at least 5 million must be under the age of 18, Eurostat said on its website . Children who grow up in poverty or at risk of social exclusion find it difficult to do well at school, enjoy good health and realize their full potential later in life.
03.11.2022
ROMANIA'S NATIONAL STRATEGY COMMISSION REVISES UP ITS 2022 ECONOMIC GROWTH ESTIMATE TO 4.6 PERCENT
Romania's National Strategy and Forecast Commission forecasts economic growth for this year of 4.6 percent - 1.1 percent above the summer forecast (+3.5 percent). On the other hand, the commission revised down its economic growth forecast for 2023 from 3.7% to 2.8%, the Romanian agency Agerpress reported, citing a report by the National Strategy and Forecast Commission.
The report attributed the improvement in this year's estimates to the fact that construction and services performed above expectations, contributing a combined 5% to the increase in gross domestic product and offsetting the negative effect of industry and agriculture (-0.9 percentage points).
Gross value added for the tertiary sector, which regains its status as a growth engine, is expected to grow by 7.7 percent, with a tendency to slow slightly in the second half of the year, while the construction sector is expected to grow by 6.1 percent due to an increase in activity in the second half of the year, states the KNSP in the autumn edition of its medium-term forecast for 2022 - 2026.
According to the Commission for National Strategy and Forecast, the negative contribution comes from industry, with a projected decline in gross value added of 1.2 percent, and the drought-hit agriculture sector, for which previous estimates were significantly revised down to a 12.8 percent decline.
The Commission for National Strategy and Forecast also notes that gross investment saw a slight recovery in the second quarter of 2022, a trend that will continue as the implementation of European Union-funded public investments gathers pace. However, the revision of gross capital formation growth was only a modest +0.6 percentage points to 4.3 percent, mainly due to unfavorable influences from the equipment component.
"According to the current forecast, domestic demand is considered as the engine of economic growth, and net exports have a zero contribution, as the dynamics of exports of goods and services (9.2%) are canceled out by imports of goods and services (8.2 per hundred)", it is also stated in the report of the Commission for National Strategy and Forecast.
02.11.2022
BY HOW MUCH BGN SHOULD THE TRAVEL ALLOWANCE BE INCREASED?
Comment from the specialist
Let's remember that according to the legislation in Bulgaria, the mandated worker or resident who wants to spend the night in the place of the mandate will be paid a daily allowance of BGN 20 for each day of the mandate. There are appointments that perform military duties for the greater part of the working time in the target area without overnight stays, they are paid per diem in the amount of 50 per cent of the day. BGN 10
The amount of daily allowances for business trips in the country has not been changed since 2008. This means that for more than 14 years the amounts have not undergone an update, as actually happened with a number of additional payments related to the performance of official duties.
With the last amendment from 2008, the daily allowance was raised from BGN 12 to BGN 20. After that, there is no movement to increase this amount. All this more and more often arouses the dissatisfaction of workers and employees, who ask the question when the amount of these funds will be increased. Dr. Todor Kapitanov, an expert in the field of labor law, explains what are the grounds for increasing the amount of travel allowances and in what amount.
According to the law, when the needs of the enterprise require, the employer can send the worker or the employee to perform the labor duties outside the place of his permanent work, but for no more than 30 calendar days without interruption. Appointment for a period longer than 30 calendar days, which is performed by the employee or the resident in writing. The delegation issues the written order.
Many times in recent years, the trade unions have made proposals to the management for amendments and additions to the Ordinance on business trips in the country. This is precisely the normative act that determines the conditions for secondment in the country, the amounts of the secondment money (travel, per diem and accommodation), the procedure for their accounting, as well as the rights and obligations of the seconded and seconded. The managers in the various years back, for some unknown reason, however, answer that there are no arguments for increasing the amount of daily allowances during a business trip in the country, despite the obvious increase in prices in the past years.
It is clear to everyone that in the last 2 years the cost of living has increased, including food and services, which is a sufficient argument to determine an adequate amount of daily travel money in relation to the prices of food offered at present.
What do the calculations show? In short, in the period 2008 – 2021, the accumulated average annual inflation is 26.5%. If we add to it the inflation reached so far, we are already talking about an accumulation of over 44%. In this case, the daily allowance for a business trip in the amount of BGN 20 should rise to BGN 29. In this case, the increase in the allowance for business trips will only catch up with the growth of inflation for the specified period of time.
However, if we start from the fact that the daily money for a business trip covers food costs, then it follows that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for food products, which is updated by the official statistics in Bulgaria, should be used. In this situation, it follows that for the period 2008-2021 The CPI for food increased by 34.5% and after adding to this percentage the data for the period December 2021 - September 2022, an accumulation of 61.5% is obtained. Under these conditions, it follows that the daily allowance for a business trip of BGN 20 should reach at least BGN 32.
Whether this will be achieved remains to be seen. The law in Bulgaria determines the minimum amounts of money for a business trip, which means that employers have the opportunity, if they wish, to allocate a larger amount of funds for the business trip of workers and employees both in the country and abroad. Another question is how many of them do it at all.
Reference:
Art. 121, paragraph 1, paragraph 2 of the Labor Code,
Art. 8, Art. 9, para. 1, 19, para. 1, para. 2 of the Order for the candidates in the party.
Consumer Price Index (CPI)
02.11.2022
USE OF LEAVE DURING A PANDEMIC
Under what conditions is leave used in a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation?
With the amendments to the Labor Code of August 1, 2022, the provision regarding the use of leave in the event of a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation was amended. In it, a change is made regarding the requirement for the employee's acquired work experience, as a condition for the use of this type of leave.
According to the changes, when due to a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation by order of the employer or by order of a state body, the work of the enterprise, part of the enterprise or individual employees is suspended, the employer has the right to provide the employee with paid annual leave or the employee and without his consent, including a worker or an employee who has not acquired 4 months of work experience.
The law also stipulates that the employer is obliged to allow the use of paid annual leave or unpaid leave in the case of a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation at the request of:
It is important to specify that the time during which this type of leave is used is recognized as work experience.
As can be seen, the law gives the right to the employer to provide paid annual leave to the worker or employee without his consent, including to a worker or employee who has not acquired 4 months of work experience. This right can be exercised under the following objective conditions:
- declared state of emergency;
- declared emergency epidemic situation;
- order of the employer to suspend the work of the enterprise, part of the enterprise or individual employees;
- order of a state body to suspend the operation of the enterprise, part of the enterprise or individual workers and employees.
In addition to the above prerequisites, in order to exercise this possibility of unilaterally granting paid annual leave to workers/employees who are practically unable to work, it is also necessary for the employer to issue an order on this basis and to determine which worker, from at which time and in what amount it unilaterally grants his paid annual leave.
It should also be noted that the employer can also grant paid leave to employees who do not have the minimum necessary work experience, giving them the right to use paid annual leave under the general rules. It is good to know that the granting of paid annual leave is tied to the period of suspension of work. In other words, the amount of paid annual leave that the employer will provide unilaterally to the worker and the employee must coincide with the period specified in the order to suspend work.
The amount of paid annual leave granted in the event of a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation cannot exceed and cannot be greater than the time specified in the employer's order to suspend work due to a declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation, regardless of whether it was issued on the initiative of the employer himself or was issued as a result of the execution of an order of a competent state authority.
Note that the law has not established which paid annual leave is granted - whether for the current year or one that has not been used in previous years. This is a matter of discretion on the part of the employer.
The following conclusions can be drawn from the provision in the law:
The recognition of work experience for the time of use of this type of leave does not matter its duration and type, but only whether it was used in connection with the declared state of emergency or a declared emergency epidemic situation.
Reference:
Art. 173a, para. 1, 2, 3 of the Labor Code
