“People who have suffered from the fires can submit applications for one-time assistance to the regional directorates of the Social Assistance Agency. Its amount is three times the poverty line or about 2,000 leva. The funds will be provided by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy.” This was announced by Minister Borislav Gutsanov to journalists in Plovdiv, where he opened the National Working Meeting of the Employment Agency.
During the event, he presented key priorities for the development of the labor market and the country's economy. “Bulgaria achieved unemployment of 5.1% for the first six months of the year. We occupy leading positions in Europe in terms of low unemployment“, said Minister Gutsanov. At the same time, he stressed that pay remains a problem and our country ranks one of the last in the EU in terms of this indicator.
The minister confirmed that the minimum wage will most likely reach around 1,200 leva next year, if the current rule for its calculation, regulated in the Labor Code, is maintained. “I would very much like to talk more about the Ministry of Labor. It is no coincidence that in the name itself, labor comes first, and then social policy. We cannot have the necessary benefits and social policy without having an economy“, emphasized Minister Gutsanov. He announced plans to increase benefits for young families and maternity benefits in 2026, once the necessary funds are provided through the development of the labor market.
According to him, dealing with the demographic crisis is a key task, because the future of the nation and the economy depends on it. The Minister drew attention to the fact that 24% of the population is over 65 years old, and the average age is 45.3 years old. As a solution, he proposed targeting the Bulgarian diaspora abroad through the new program "I Choose Bulgaria". Minister Borislav Gutsanov pointed out that this could permanently solve the problem of the shortage of personnel, as well as help improve the demographic situation.
With regard to attracting foreign personnel, he announced that about 50,000 workers from third countries are expected to come to Bulgaria in 2025 to compensate for the shortage of personnel. The Employment Agency also works on weekends to facilitate access, he specified.
There are about 200,000 people in Bulgaria who neither work nor study. "This is not normal - on the one hand we are bringing in 50,000 workers, and we have 200,000 people who are doing nothing," commented Minister Gutsanov. Therefore, the government decided to create a special register to track economically inactive people.