Bulgarian Trade Unionists Welcome Finance Minister with Boos

Politics » DOMESTIC | May 2, 2012, Wednesday // 15:31
Bulgaria: Bulgarian Trade Unionists Welcome Finance Minister with Boos Prime Minister Boyko Borisov (right) and CITUB leader Plamen Dimitrov (left) at the VII Ordinary CITUB congress taking place on May 2-3 in Sofia. Photo by BGNES

Finance Minister Simeon Djankov has argued that an increase in pensions and salaries in the public sector in 2013 is achievable, provided that all efforts are concentrated on the task.

However, the mention of Djankov's name among the participants of a congress of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB) drew boos from the audience, while the name of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov was enthusiastically applauded.

At the opening of the forum, the CITUB demanded a 25% increase in the average wage against the backdrop of restored employment levels.

In his Wednesday statement, CITUB leader Plamen Dimitrov insisted that the minimum wage had to climb to BGN 330 (from the current BGN 290) by the beginning of 2013.

He stressed that the crisis had resulted in the loss of over 400 000 jobs and a shrinking of incomes in Bulgaria.

The trade union leader noted that the good dialogue with the government had brought good results such as preventing the loss of over 20 000 jobs through the program for part-time employment.

Prime Minister Borisov, in turn, emphasized on the importance of an efficient economy in Bulgaria.

"There is hardly a Prime Minister or a President who would frown at high pensions, high wages rising constantly, smaller workloads and a low retirement age," Borisov noted, adding that the achievement of those universally desirable parameters was a question of economic leeway.

Borisov reminded that the current crisis had turned out to be the longest one.

The Prime Minister argued that Bulgaria had to boost the quality of its production to keep up with competition from India and China.

He emphasized that thousands of Bulgarians were working on a number of key infrastructure projects promising development for the country.

Borisov vowed that the projects that were being built would significantly boost the investment climate and the living standards.

The Prime Minister cited "privatization looting" as a major reason for the current economic woes.

In his Wednesday address, Finance Minister Djankov opposed the CITUB leader, saying that the minimum wage had grown by 22% since the beginning of the crisis, while the inflation had increased by 8%.

Prior to the opening of the CITUB congress, Djankov listed the benefits of the planned relocation of a number of state agencies away from the capital to big cities like Varna, Burgas, Plovdiv and Veliko Tarnovo.

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Tags: Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria, CITUB, Plamen Dimitrov, minimum wage, pensions, Retirement age, Finance Minister Simeon Djankov

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