"We have clearly set the line with the protests - a minimum of 10% increase in wages and a minimum wage of 690 euros. These are minimum demands, we are not maximalists, because we realize that the budget is not a bottomless pit. We are not in negotiations, we are waiting to be invited. We are not threatening, the protests are self-inflicted. Nobody wants to riot," said the vice president of the CITUB Todor Kapitanov in the program "Denyat ON AIR".
The meeting of the trade unionists with Prime Minister Rumen Radev is scheduled for Friday, October 23. The unions hope to get the answers demanded by the protesting people. "We are prioritizing the improvement of public services and the ways in which citizens use them. We all want them to be improved. For improvement, motivated employees are needed to carry out these processes. This happens mainly through financial incentives", Kapitanov explained to Bulgaria ON AIR.
The guest reported that they had held preliminary formal and informal meetings with the Minister of Finance Galab Donev, but the problem now is that they understand the parameters of the budget from the media.
"This caused the workers' revolt. These parameters of 5% are happening for the second year in a row", he explained.
According to Kapitanov, there are many signals that a targeted income policy is needed, which should be reflected in the 2027 budget. "It is becoming intolerable! Pay slips of 523 euros are being shown, civil servants are toothless because they don't have money for treatment... This is the reality in Bulgaria. You need 330 euros just to go to work for 22 days. People are cornered, it's a fight for survival," he warns.
"We are in a state of high social tension and high protest readiness. We are already commenting on strikes at workplaces, which means stopping work in the work structures," concluded the vice president of the Confederation of Bulgarian Trade Unions.