One of the first bills submitted to the National Assembly is the one to raise the retirement age in higher education institutions. It was submitted by deputies from the “MECH“ party. This prompted a comment from Assoc. Prof. Milen Mihov, who is the former Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Education and Science in the period 2017 - 2021, during whose mandate, at the proposal of the then and current Minister of Education and Science Krasimir Valchev, changes were adopted in the Higher Education Act, regulating the rule that the mandates of rectors, deans and heads of departments in universities should end upon reaching the age of 65. His comment was published on his Facebook profile:
„Is this how the reforms in higher education should have started? A draft amendment to the Higher Education Act of the smallest group of MPs envisages raising the retirement age for teachers in higher education institutions from 65 to 70 years. The plausible pretext is that the retirement age is being raised for all categories of workers and it is approaching 65 years, and teachers at this age can still be useful. The truth is that even now the teaching contracts of those over 65 can be extended by another 3 years, following a proposal from the relevant department and a decision by the collective bodies. The point is that during this period, leading positions in the management of higher education institutions such as rectors, vice-rectors, deans, etc. cannot be held. The essence of the change is that it gives the right to some heads of higher education institutions who reach retirement age (this year) to keep their posts.
A few years ago, the same desires were the reason for the proposal submitted to the National Assembly to abolish the limit of two consecutive terms for elected rectors and other governing bodies. Heads to the grave. You might say exaggerated. No, because according to the latest data from the National Statistical Institute, the average age in Bulgaria is 73.5 years, but for men it is only 69.9 years.“