14.09.2022
IS SALARY PAYMENT POSSIBLE IN BITCOIN?
According to the law in Bulgaria, it is not permissible to pay the full amount of the labor remuneration in non-monetary form.
This conclusion stems from Bulgaria's international legal commitments as a member state of the International Labor Organization (ILO). Bulgaria ratified Convention No. 95 of the ILO on the protection of wages. The main purpose of the Convention is to guarantee the actual receipt of labor remuneration by workers. According to the document, wages should only be paid in legal tender, and payments in the form of checks, receipts or coupons or in any other form believed to be legal tender are prohibited.
Partial payment of wages in kind is permitted in industries and occupations where such payment is customary or desirable due to the nature of the industry or occupation concerned. In no case is it allowed to pay wages in alcohol or drugs. In cases where partial payment of wages in kind is permitted, appropriate measures must be taken to ensure that benefits in kind are for the personal use of the worker and his family and are in their interest. It should also be ensured that the value of such benefits is fair and reasonable.
According to Bulgarian legislation, labor remuneration is paid in cash. Additional labor remuneration or a part of it may be paid in kind, if this is provided for in an act of the Council of Ministers, in a collective labor agreement or in the labor contract. The law in our country also says that additional labor remuneration provided in kind cannot include alcoholic beverages, harmful narcotic substances and tobacco products.
Insurance contributions are not calculated and paid on the funds provided in the form of food vouchers to employees, including persons working under management contracts.
It is important for employers to know that social costs for 2022 of up to BGN 200 per month provided in the form of food vouchers to each employee are not taxed. For comparison, before the entry into force of this provision (from 01.01.2022), this amount was BGN 80 per month per person.
Reference:
Convention No. 95 of the International Labor Organization (Articles 3 and 4 of the Convention)
Art. 269 of the Labor Code
Art. 6, para. 3 of the Ordinance on the structure and organization of the salary
Art. 209, para. 1 of the Law on Corporate Income Taxation
Art. 2, para. 3 of the Ordinance on the elements of the remuneration and on the income on which social security contributions are made
§ 1, para. 7 of the Transitional and Final Provisions to the Law on the State Budget of the Republic of Bulgaria for 2022.
13.09.2022
PUNISHMENT FOR THE USE OF ALCOHOL DURING WORK
The employer or the immediate supervisor may temporarily remove from work a worker or an employee who appears in a condition that does not allow him to perform his work duties, uses alcohol or another strong intoxicant during working hours.
The suspension shall continue until the worker or employee regains fitness to perform his assigned work.
During the time the suspension lasts, the worker or employee does not receive labor remuneration. Dismissal is an act that temporarily suspends the performance of the work obligation without terminating it. By its legal nature, it is a coercive disciplinary measure and represents a specific manifestation of the employer's disciplinary power.
When performing the work for which he has agreed, the worker or employee is obliged to report to work in a condition that allows him to perform the assigned tasks and not to use alcohol or any other intoxicating substance during working hours. Otherwise, it is considered a violation of labor discipline.
Practice shows that, in addition to the law, the employee's obligation to report to work in a condition that allows him to perform his work in a quality and safe manner is also regulated in his job description, which he signs before being appointed to the relevant workplace.
Another way to regulate such relationships is the Rules for the internal labor order in the relevant workplace. The employer is obliged to issue a regulation for the internal labor order, which defines the rights and obligations of the employees and the employer in terms of the employment relationship and regulates the organization of work in the enterprise according to the particularities of its activity. The employer issues the rules for the internal work order, after conducting preliminary consultations with the representatives of the trade union organizations in the enterprise and with the representatives of the workers and employees under Art. 7, para. 2 of the Labor Code.
Reference:
Art. 126, art. 181, Art. 187 and Art. 199 of the Labor Code
12.09.2022
ONLINE COURSE "SOLVING PROBLEMS WITH EXCEL" STARTS ON OCTOBER 4
Online course "Solving problems with Excel - basic level" started on October 4. It is free for Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria and Bulgarian Industrial Association members, and registration is open until September 30.
The training lasts 8 hours and will be divided into 4 days of 2 hours each. It will be held on October 4, 6, 11 and 13 at 10 am.
The course is suitable for complete beginners with no experience with MS Excel or other similar software, or those with basic work skills who want to familiarize themselves with the full professional capabilities of the application.
For the course
In this course you will learn the basics of Microsoft Excel. Within 8 hours, you'll be able to expertly navigate Excel's user interface, perform basic calculations with formulas and functions, professionally format spreadsheets, and create data visualizations through charts and graphs. You'll discover a whole range of skills and techniques that will become a standard component of your everyday use of Excel. In this course, you will build skills to manage large data sets and create reports. These key techniques and tools will allow you to efficiently automate your daily tasks in Excel.
Whether you want to fill in the gaps for better efficiency and productivity, or have never used Excel before, this training will give you a solid foundation to become a confident user and develop your skills.
The best way to learn Excel is to use Excel. Learners will solve a wide range of problems and cases while applying the Excel skills and techniques they learn during training.
This course uses Excel workbooks that you will have access to, with applied examples and hands-on exercises. This provides learners with countless opportunities to practice their Excel skills while discovering new and useful Excel productivity features for different contexts.
Microsoft Excel is one of the most powerful software used in workplaces around the world. Learning to work confidently with this software means adding a very valuable asset to your work portfolio. At a time when jobs with digital skills are growing much faster than non-digital jobs, make sure you're positioned ahead of the crowd by adding Excel skills to your portfolio.
Skills you will acquire:
How is the training conducted?
The training will be conducted via the Zoom platform. After you have submitted a request, you will receive a confirmation email and a link to the platform. With it you can enter the virtual classroom on the day and time of the announced training. Using this platform requires you to complete the following steps before the meeting starts:
How can you sign up?
Send an email with your request containing name, email and course name to: fandonov@citub.net by September 30, 2022. Once you have submitted your request, you will receive an email with the learning resources and a link to the Zoom platform within 2 days before the start of the course.
How are participants evaluated?
The training will end with solving given problems using Excel. Do not take it as a test, but as an opportunity to practice the topics you have learned.
Is a Certificate issued?
Upon successful completion of the course, a Certificate is issued.
More about the training:
The course covers the following topics:
For additional information or technical problems, you can contact us by e-mail: fandonov@citub.net.
12.09.2022
THE STATE CONTINUES TO SUPPORT BUSINESSES WITH EC PROGRAMS
By the end of the year, BGN 735 million will enter the Bulgarian economy through the Ministry of Innovation and Growth alone, mostly for small and medium-sized companies, said the Minister of Innovation and Growth Aleksandar Pulev at the opening of the forum "Big money for small business: Funding opportunities under the Recovery and Resilience Plan".
The Deputy Prime Minister for the Management of European Funds Atanas Pekanov and Minister Pulev opened the meeting, which is organized by the Executive Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises. It was attended by the Director General of the General Directorate "European Funds for Competitiveness" Iliyana Ilieva and the Executive Director of the Executive Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises Boyko Takov, as well as experts.
The majority of these BGN 735 million will go through the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience. The plan is working - in the Ministry of Innovation and Growth we already have an application procedure - this is the procedure for technological modernization for BGN 260 million, and the deadline for applying projects is September 21, Pulev recalled.
The state continues to work, even though we are an official cabinet, the minister added. Our main commitment is to give a breath of fresh air to Bulgarian business and especially to small and medium-sized companies at a difficult time - inflation, destroyed supply chains and others, he added. I am grateful for the legacy, we have a wonderful team of experts in the Ministry of Innovation and Growth, said Aleksandar Pulev.
The second procedure under the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience, on which the Ministry of Innovation and Growth is working, is for BGN 30 million for ICT solutions and cyber security. This will be 100 percent grant aid for about 1,400 companies, he pointed out. The third procedure being prepared is for investments in photovoltaic plants plus batteries and will have a budget of BGN 200 million. The fourth has a budget of BGN 120 million for development and intellectual activity, the minister said.
In parallel, work is being done on the structural funds, the majority of which will reach the economy from the beginning of next year, but now we have to meet all the deadlines, Pulev also told the participants of the meeting. We have made progress on the two largest programs - "Competitiveness and Innovations" with a resource of BGN 3 billion. We have already submitted the program to the EC and I hope it will be approved as quickly as possible. The program has a resource of about BGN 3 billion. The other structural funds program is "Research and digital transformation". It has a budget of BGN 2 billion and I am confident that it will be submitted to the EC by September 23, said Aleksandar Pulev.
12.09.2022
HOW MUCH IS PAYABLE FOR THE FULFILLMENT OF PUBLIC AND OTHER OBLIGATIONS?
The Labor Code expressly provides for several cases in which the worker or employee performs civil or public duties that are outside of his duties under the employment relationship. Their implementation usually coincides with his working hours, which is why he has to be absent from work. For these days, according to the Labor Code, the worker or employee has the right to leave from the employer and the employer is obliged to release him from the performance of his work duties.
Civil or public obligations within the meaning of the Labor Code are:
Leave for these activities is used regardless of paid annual leave and unpaid annual leave. Their use does not require a specific prior work experience.
The payment of these leaves varies depending on the legal basis and the type of leave granted for it.
When the worker or employee is subpoenaed by a judicial authority or by another state body, it is paid according to the procedural capacity in which the worker or employee is subpoenaed. If summoned as a party, no fee is due. If he is called as an expert - he is owed a fee by the party to the dispute that requested the expertise, or at the expense of the budget of the judiciary. If he is called as a witness - he is owed a fee that is determined by the court - at the expense of the party to the dispute that requested his summoning, and when the witness is called by the court - his fee is determined by the court and is at the expense of the budget of the judiciary.
For participation in a meeting as a member of a representative state body, the remuneration is determined in the Law on Local Self-Government and Local Administration.
The remuneration of jurors is regulated in Ordinance No. 1 of 02.03.2011 for jurors.
The remuneration of employees for participation in the meetings of the special negotiating body, as a member of the European Works Council or of a representative body in a European commercial or cooperative company is paid by the employer in accordance with the procedure for determining the remuneration for the use of paid annual leave.
Reference:
Art. 157 of the Labor Code
09.09.2022
THEY ARE LOOKING FOR PEOPLE IN PRODUCTION AND TRADE
After two months in a row of seeing a decline in the number of job postings, there was a smooth recovery in August with growth of 1.1%. This is what the monthly analysis of a job search and supply platform shows. The total number of offers is 47,000, and on an annual basis it remains at the same level (47,100 in August 2021).
Active dynamics are observed in the various sectors, with the largest number of offers increased in the sectors "Manufacturing" (550 offers more or 8% growth) and "Trade and sales" (530 offers more, 5% growth).
Growth is also observed in the sectors "Healthcare and Pharmacy" with 10% (170 offers more), "Hospitality and Restaurant" (2% or 130 offers more) and "Construction" (1.7%, 40 offers more).
Contrary to the previous trend, in August we observed the biggest drop in offers in the "IT" sector. Advertisements in this sector are nearly 600 fewer than in July, or a drop of 11%. As in previous months, this decline is mainly due to the weak working season.
We also report a decrease in advertisements in August in the following sectors: "Accounting, audit, finance" (-9%), "Administrative and service activities" (-4%), "Marketing and advertising" (-3%) and "Logistics and transport " (-2.6%).
Share distribution
The distribution of ads by sector remains the same as in the previous month of July.
With the largest share of offers is the "Trade and Sales" sector with 23%, followed by the "Manufacturing" (16%) and "Hospitality and Restaurant" sectors (15%). They are followed by the sectors "IT" (12%), "Logistics and transport" (10%), "Administrative and service activities" (10%), "Construction" (5%), "Accounting, audit, finance" ( 4.4%), "Healthcare and Pharmacy" (3.9%), "Marketing and Advertising" (3%) and "Art" (1%).
Work from home
Offers to work from home and/or telecommute are down 8% (400 offers less). This is mainly due to the lower number of vacancies in the IT sector, as it offers half of this type of job opportunities. Advertisements for work from home and/or remote work are about 4,800 for the country or 12% of the total number of advertisements.
As a breakdown by sector, 53% of offers are in the IT sector, followed by Administrative and Service Activities (15%), Outsourcing Industry (15%) and Trade and Sales (5%).
Offer by city
The total number of advertisements in the leading regional cities increased by 2%. The dynamics in each of them is as follows: Sofia (3%), Plovdiv (2%), Varna (-7%), Burgas (-3%), Ruse (4%) and Stara Zagora (4%). As a share, the number of proposals in them is 73% of all advertisements, and the distribution in each of the cities is: Sofia (45%), Plovdiv (10%), Varna (9%), Burgas (4%), Ruse (3%) and Stara Zagora (3%).
Ads suitable for refugees
The number of refugee-friendly job postings in August was around 2,200 (6% share of all postings), down 8% from the previous month.
09.09.2022
ARE WE ENTITLED TO A "CLASS" WHEN WORKING ON A SECOND EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT?
According to the Labor Code in Bulgaria, the basic and additional wages of a permanent nature are agreed upon between the parties to the employment relationship. Upon the creation of the employment relationship, the employer is obliged to determine, in addition to the basic remuneration, additional remuneration of a permanent nature.
For acquired work experience and professional experience, employees are paid an additional monthly remuneration as a percentage of the basic salary determined by the individual employment contract.
The additional labor remuneration for work experience and professional experience is paid for actual time worked only under the main employment relationship, and in the case of part-time work - under each separate employment contract, until they are supplemented to the corresponding monthly length of working time. This payment is permanent – it is paid monthly as long as there is a reason to receive it.
When determining the amount of additional labor remuneration for acquired work experience and professional experience, the employer takes into account the work experience of the worker or employee in the same, similar or of the same nature job, position or profession. The conditions under which the similar nature of the work, position or profession is respected are determined by a collective labor agreement at the branch level or by the internal rules for the wage in the enterprise.
By Decree of the Council of Ministers No. 147 of 29.06.2007 on determining the minimum amount of additional labor remuneration for acquired work experience and professional experience, the minimum amount of additional labor remuneration for acquired work experience and professional experience is set at 0.6 percent for each year of work experience and professional experience.
The worker or employee is not required to return amounts of wages and benefits received in good faith.
Reference:
Art. 66, para. 1, item 7 of the Labor Code
Art. 271, para. 1 of the Labor Code
para. 1, item 2 of the Additional provisions of the Labor Code
Art. 12, para. 1 Ordinance on the structure and organization of the salary
Art. 22, para. 1 of the Ordinance on the structure and organization of the salary
08.09.2022
BULGARIA WITH UNPRECEDENTED GROWTH IN ECONOMIC FREEDOM
Bulgaria marks an unprecedented growth in the global ranking of economic freedom. The country ranks 23rd out of 165 countries and territories included in the Economic Freedom Around the World 2022 study, published today by the Market Economy Institute in association with Canada's Fraser Institute.
This year's edition is based on 2020 data (the latest internationally comparable data for all countries). For another year, Hong Kong and Singapore topped the ranking, followed by Switzerland, New Zealand, Denmark, Australia, USA, Estonia, Mauritius and Ireland. At the bottom are Venezuela, Sudan and Zimbabwe.
Where is Bulgaria and why is it so far ahead?
The study ranked Bulgaria in 23rd place - among the freest countries, but the assessment of economic freedom in the country is actually decreasing. The result of Bulgaria is 7.69 points (out of the maximum 10 points), which is a decrease of 0.10 points compared to last year.
The reason for Bulgaria's rise in the ranking by as many as 8 positions is actually the deterioration of freedom in a number of countries. The average result of the countries of the world marked a record collapse - in 2020 it was 0.16 points lower than in 2019. This erases a decade of growth and increased economic freedom around the world, and the decline is more than three times greater than that reported in the immediate aftermath of the 2008-2009 financial crisis. Thus, the Covid-19 pandemic is becoming the biggest catastrophe for economic freedom on a global scale.
However, this is precisely what allows Bulgaria to overtake many countries. While in 2020 most of the other member countries significantly increase transfers and subsidies, take on new debts and print money, in Bulgaria these negatives are delayed and on a relatively limited scale – compensations are relatively few, measures are relatively loose.
A comparison of the most crisis-affected components of the index shows the large decrease in results in European countries. Austria loses half a point due to increased redistribution and subsidies in the country. Spain loses a quarter of a point for stable money on falling stocks and money printing. Portugal loses almost a full point because of the increase in its public debt.
Where Bulgaria really performs well
Apart from the improvement in the ranking due to the deterioration of other countries, Bulgaria has some anchors that have consistently provided stability over the years and actually show high marks and a good place in the ranking of the index. These are low income taxation (flat tax), stable money (currency board), low tariffs (EU membership), free credit (a large number of banks) - long-term policies for growth and prosperity that the Institute for Market Economy has defended since its inception.
What are the problems
In the weakest category for Bulgaria - "Legal system and property rights" - there is no improvement. The result is 5.96 points, or 0.02 points more than last year's edition, despite the low base. The country's performance is particularly poor in the impartiality of the courts, trust in the police and protection of property rights (all with less than 5 points). Thus, while in the other member countries the scores are around 8 points, Bulgaria's result is close to that of countries such as Uruguay, Bhutan, Mongolia, India.
A weak legal system and protection of property rights hinders investment, entrepreneurship and long-term economic development, and this cannot be compensated for and overcome by better achievements in other measures of freedom.
Other such factors, which are not visible from the result of Bulgaria in the index (and not only in this one), are the formal implementation of legislation and the large regional differences. In a number of components, the index takes into account the provisions in the normative acts, rather than actually whether and how they are implemented (especially in the category reporting regulations). This is particularly pernicious when corruption is widespread, illegal regimes are in place, there is dominance of one employer, institutions do not work, and courts do not act as a corrective to other authorities to ensure justice.
Why freedom is important
Again this year, the index examines the relationship between freedom and various aspects of economic and social life and illustrates the differences in development between the freest ¼ of countries (42 countries) and the least free ¼ (40 countries):
- The gross domestic product per capita is 7 times higher;
- The income of the poorest 10% of the population is more than 8 times higher;
- Life expectancy is 15 years higher;
- Child mortality is 10 times lower;
- The poverty level from much lower;
- The share of children enrolled in school is much higher;
- People in free countries consider themselves happier.
05.09.2022
FACTORY CREATES 1,000 NEW JOBS
1,000 new jobs are expected to be created at the "Arsenal" AD weapons plant in Kazanlak. This was announced by the director of the Stara Zagora Bureau of Labor Directorate Lyuben Georgiev.
He added that a meeting was held between representatives of the Agency and the management of the plant. During it, a request for a study on the appointment of new workers was submitted.
According to Georgiev, they are mainly looking for women of working age for the factories in Kazanlak and Maglizh. The average monthly salary is about BGN 1,800, and additional bonuses have been introduced every three and six months.
The director of the labor bureau summarized that the plant currently employs about 6,500 people, and plans to increase the number to 8,000 workers.
05.09.2022
WHICH BULGARIANS WORK MOST OFTEN FOR CASH, WITHOUT INSURANCE
Workers with lower education most often agree to pocket money, and employers who pay their employees wages "under the table" are micro, small and, less often, medium and large enterprises. This became clear during a round table on the topic "Salary in an envelope", organized by the National Revenue Agency.
The forum was attended by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, NSI, General Labor Inspectorate, researchers in behavioral economics - Dr. Jan Schmitz from Radboud University, Netherlands and Dr. Philip Dörenberg, Center for European economic research, Germany, the Association of Industrial Capital, representatives of employer and trade union organizations, accountants and experts.
All present at the roundtable agreed that the most effective approach to dealing with the risk of income evasion is to inform the public about the losses and negatives of undeclared work for all stakeholders, as well as the benefits of complying with the law.
The executive director of the Association of Industrial Capital, Dobrin Ivanov, listed more than 50 measures to limit and prevent undeclared employment. Among them are legislative changes, regular interdepartmental meetings to exchange good practices, training of inspectors from the National Revenue Agency and the General Labor Inspectorate, etc.
The Deputy Minister of Finance Alexander Svrakov expressed his expectation that if each of the representatives of the business, the administration, the trade unions share their opinion and make proposals, this will lead to a successful solution to the problem.
Inspectors from the National Revenue Agency and the General Labor Inspectorate have checked a total of 516 companies for the existence of employee employment contracts and compliance with tax and insurance legislation, it became clear during the round table. The employers visited by the inspectors were identified as risky after reports were filed against them and inspections by the control authorities due to suspicions that they employed workers without a contract. Often, in such enterprises, employees have signed a 4-hour work contract, but work 8 hours or are insured on minimum wage, but in reality they receive twice as much.
According to Ekaterina Asenova, executive director of the Main Labor Inspectorate, the salary in an envelope closes the future not only of the individual, but also of many important spheres and social systems and, accordingly, of our entire society.
"An employee who receives BGN 1,500, but his employer provides him with the minimum wage, in a long-term perspective will lose nearly BGN 109,000," said Antonia Ivanova, director of the Communications Directorate at the National Revenue Agency, demonstrating to the participants in the round table the possibilities of the loss calculator on the website: www.zaplatavplik.bg.
"Although the greatest loss of wages in an envelope is suffered by employees, this phenomenon also causes serious damage to employers. They can receive serious fines, penal interest, deprivation of the right to participate in public procurement, even if they bear criminal liability, while at the same time risking their image among partners, customers, suppliers", commented Kalin Atanasov, state expert in the Directorate "Risk Management".
