LABOR MARKET AND SOCIAL POLICY:ASSESSMENT, PRIORITIES, AND DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVESBrief assessment of the state of the labor market and of the most significant problems and challenges in the social sphere
A demographic crisis is looming, and by 2050, Bulgaria will lose nearly a third of its population of working age. Our country is the fastest shrinking country in the world in terms of its population.
Bulgaria is the leader in terms of young people (about 170,000 people) who neither study nor work (NEETs – Not in Education, Employment, or Training).
The „hunger“ for appropriate personnel is intensifying.
There are structural deficits in terms of workforce with secondary and higher education.
The problems in the fight against poverty and inequalities in Bulgaria are much more manifested in the pension and social policy, which do not achieve their main goal: providing sufficient replacement income and, as a result, reducing the risk of poverty.
There is also a lag in the development of the „Education“ and „Healthcare“ sectors compared to other member states of the European Union.
Strengthening of regional imbalances in the labor market has been recorded. The expected employment contraction will affect all regions, and the observed wage inequalities will further stimulate internal and external migration of the working population. All this will lead to a deepening of the structural inconsistencies in those regional labor markets, which are characterized by relatively lower levels of labor remuneration and lag behind in their socio-economic development compared to the leading regions (Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas) in Bulgaria.
Top priorities
Digital transformation and remote/hybrid work will continue to change companies and workers, so skills are at the forefront of workforce preparation.
Increasing labor supply through social inclusion, improving work capacity, development of social services.
Creating a policy on incomes, relief funds and compensations to stimulate employment and active behavior in the labor market.
Active care for the elderly.
Measures to achieve the above stated prioritiesShort-term measures
Provision of large-scale training programs in digital skills.
Creating specialized incentives and opportunities for young people to facilitate their entry into work.
Ensuring employment for long-term unemployed persons of working age who are in extremely difficult financial situations and are subject to long-term monthly support. For them, it is necessary to create an opportunity to build sustainable work habits and motivation for work. If necessary, they should be given the opportunity for additional professional qualification or re-training in order to improve their competitiveness on the labor market.
Developing social services and giving priority to the individual approach in solving the problems of risk groups based on their specific needs.
Guaranteeing a certain minimum income for the elderly and citizens with health problems, after all possibilities for self-support and assistance from persons obliged to support them by law have been exhausted.
Launch of all European qualification and re-training programs.
Creating incentives for companies to improve working conditions and digitization.
Medium-term measures
Development of policies for the inclusion and integration of the long-term unemployed.
Improving the analytical capacity of administrations in the field of social policy.
Developing specific support programs that do not make people dependent on social benefits, but encourage their active social inclusion.
Improving the provision of social services.
Improving the targeting and adequacy of social benefits.
Review of disability policy and assessment systems.
Increasing the effectiveness of supplementary pension insurance.
Changes in the education admissions plan for a more complete adaptation to the demand for labor force.
Further development of electronically accessible administrative services for children and families.
Long-term measures
Improving the management of the social assistance system and creating new legislation for integrated support.
Effective management of free movement and migration processes in order to ensure a workforce according to the needs of the labor market.
Creating conditions for combining personal and professional life.
Activities to deal with undeclared work and to increase social security.
Improving the living conditions of at-risk population groups by reducing the number of persons in specialized institutions and providing alternative social services in the community and in the family environment.
Creation of sustainable health and social services in a home environment for the elderly, including the development of telemedicine (consulting a doctor at a distance through an Internet-connected device – Ed.).
English 
Bulgarian