site.bta Confederation of Independent Trade Unions Calls on Bulgarian MEPs to Support Minimum Wage Directive

The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) called on members of the European Parliament from Bulgaria to support the directive on adequate minimum wages in the European Union during its upcoming vote in the European Parliament on September 14, said CITUB on its website.

In a letter to the Bulgarian representatives, CITUB President Plamen Dimitrov appealed for their support and stressed the importance of the new directive. He explained that it represents a real chance to improve the situation of the most vulnerable workers in Europe, whose living costs are increasing every day. Even before there was widespread talk of a crisis in working people's purchasing power, almost one in ten workers in the EU-27 was at risk of poverty, with seven out of 10 minimum wage workers barely able to cover their costs, Dimitrov noted.

The amount of the minimum wage in Bulgaria became BGN 710 from BGN 650 per month as of April 1 of this year. The CITUB insists that the minimum wage be over BGN 800.

Back in July, minimum wage earners in 16 EU member states had to set aside the equivalent of a month's salary or more to keep the lights and heat on at home. Calculations show that a similar situation occurred in eight member states in 2021, Dimitrov stated in the letter. He noted that the situation in Bulgaria is even more alarming, not only because of the lowest amount of the minimum wage compared to the EU member states, but also because of its belated increase of 9.2% from April 1, which was already "consumed ' by rising inflation.

As of June, the purchasing power of minimum wage has actually decreased by 6.6% compared to the same period last year, and nearly 1/5 of the employed persons are minimum wage employees in the Bulgarian economy, Dimitrov adds in the letter, citing data from the National Statistical Institute, which show that over 75% of Bulgarians have difficulty covering their daily expenses.

Dimitrov also emphasized the tendency to reduce the number of workers covered by a collective labour agreement in 22 of the 27 EU member states. CITUB noted that, in addition to promoting collective negotiations, the directive will also contribute to an increase in wages. These objectives will be achieved through the imposing of a framework for the adequacy of statutory minimum wages, an obligation for Member States to promote collective negotiations  and combat union busting, a stronger involvement of trade unions in setting and updating statutory minimum wages, a requirement for enterprises and subcontractors performing public procurement to respect the right of association and collective negotiations in accordance with the International Labour Organization, added CITUB.