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Velev: The minimum wage is determined by a wrong provision

A primitive formula, sometimes simple is genius, but in this case simple is stupid and harmful. It leads to the point that it actually equates labor with medium qualifications to labor with low qualifications

Oct 15, 2024 09:54 109

Velev: The minimum wage is determined by a wrong provision  - 1

In our country, the minimum wage is determined according to a wrong provision, it is even illegal because it contradicts international law. A primitive formula, sometimes simple is genius, but in this case simple is stupid and harmful. It has the effect of effectively equalizing middle-skilled labor with low-skilled labor. It takes from the middle-skilled and gives to the low-skilled. This was stated in the studio of "The Day Begins" Vasil Velev - Chairman of the Board of AIKB.

"There is a 26% error in applying this formula, which is itself wrong. It compares not gross to gross, the government sets not a gross minimum, but a basic minimum and compares it to the gross average. The difference is 26%," Vasil Velev also explained.

The former Minister of Social Affairs, Hristina Hristova, also shares his opinion regarding the inaccuracy of the formula for calculating the minimum wage.

"In a vicious, wrong way, we harmonized our legislation with this directive, this European legislation, with this formula in the Labor Code, taking only the final reference value they give,'' said Hristina Hristova - former social minister.< /p>

According to her words, the increase in the minimum wage mostly affects educated and qualified workers.

"In our country, the debate about the amount of the minimum wage is particularly heavy and difficult, due to at least two specifics. There are mainly two reasons. One is that a very large share of working people receive MHRA, over 450,000. And the other is about the large regional imbalances and disparity in socio-economic development. There is no way to ignore these reasons and sometimes increasing the minimum wage can bring it closer to the average wage, demotivating and demotivating young people who work with lower wages. For example, in North-West Bulgaria, in North-East Bulgaria. Last week I spoke with a director from Belogradchik - they have two or three scholarship holders who are graduating in engineering and now they will start with them, he says - we can give them about 1200-1300 BGN starting salary, and here are those who are general workers - without education, without qualification, without responsible work, they will start receiving BGN 1,077. However, I have always maintained that there should be a minimum wage, this is the minimum price of labor, below which no one should allow themselves to go", Hristova stressed.

AIKB believes that industrial relations in Bulgaria are not at a sufficiently developed level.

"There is no minimum wage in Denmark, Sweden, Italy, Austria. Governments do not set a minimum wage for everyone, and there is no single minimum hourly rate. There are agreed minimum wages for economic activities between employers and trade unions. The average salary there is 60% higher than in other countries where there is a single minimum wage. There should be developed industrial relations for such a thing, but in our country they are obviously not at this level", added Vasil Velev.

"Relative to what we produce, we pay the highest minimum wages. "MRI as a percentage of GDP per capita has a big lead over all other European countries," he added.