One third, (27%) of all workers in the country or around 600 000 people are low-paid, according to a recent study.

Every fifth Bulgarian says he is extremely poor and barely makes the ends meet.18.2% believe that they receive fair wages, and 22% are not receiving salaries and benefits, due to them under the Labor Code, regularly. Every second Bulgarian does not believe that, in the light of the current situation, he/she will find a better job.

The data comes from a survey of the cost of labor of the Institute for Social and Trade Union Studies at the Confederation of Independent Syndicates in Bulgaria, KNSB, presented Friday by the union leader Plamen Dimitrov.

Those who receive up to 67% of the average net salary in the country for the respective year are considered low-paid workers. For 2012, the net average wage was BGN 525, thus BGN 325 were 67% of it, said Dimitrov. Net pay is the amount that employees receive after deduction of taxes and social contributions.

In his words, the profile of the low-paid worker is generally a woman before retirement with relatively low education, working in manufacturing or agriculture. Most often low-wage workers are employed in small businesses and work in remote villages. About 75% of low-paid workers have been jobless at least once, which affects their motivation and career development, said Luben Tomev from the Institute.

Only 15% of low-wage workers are covered by collective bargaining agreements, according to the union's data. Those who are not members of a trade union are twice more likely to be underpaid, compared to union members.

The study also shows that the shorter the time an employee worked for one company, the more likely he/she is in to be in the low-paid group.

The Confederation listed as its main goals in terms of low-paid workers: increased efficiency of collective bargaining and its expansion; negotiation of pay scales which match most closely the worker's job results and the amount of labor used in the production; direct participation of the union in the improvement of the quality of the work environment.