site.btaUPDATED Protesting Firefighters Demand Higher Salaries, Clarity about Planned Structural Changes

Firefighters from across Bulgaria Saturday gathered for a protest in downtown Sofia demanding higher salaries and clarity about structural changes planned at the Interior Ministry. The rally was organized by the Ogneborets National Fire and Rescue Trade Union.

The trade union is against the parameters set in the 2022 State Budget Bill for the Interior Ministry’s budget, as no pay raise is planned despite the rising inflation in the country. The union is also against the transfer of the Interior Ministry’s Medical Institute to the Health Ministry.

The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) Saturday published a declaration supporting the protesters. The CITUB describes as just firefighters’ demands for a 20 per cent increase of salaries, for at least 100 million leva in additional resources for capital expenditures, and for improvement of the dialogue with the Interior Ministry’s political leadership. The CITUB insists on an income raise by at least 10 per cent for workers in the budget sphere and by 15 per cent for those working in the field.

Also on Saturday, the trade union of prison staff confirmed their support for the protest of their colleagues from the Interior Ministry demanding higher incomes for those working in the Security sector. In a press release, the trade union said they had held a bilateral meeting with Justice Minister Nadezhda Yordanova on February 18, where it was confirmed that the organization would participate in Saturday’s protest. 

According to the press release, this participation does not have a political subtext and comes in continuation of the social dialogue in relation to the submitted demands for higher monthly remunerations and additional payments of permanent nature at the Interior Ministry’s general directorates for implementation of punishments and for security.

At the end of the meeting, Minister Yordanova and the trade union’s representatives expressed mutual gratitude for the good tone and the open dialogue, the press release reads.