There is a Dire Need for Labor in Bulgaria: Cooks and Tailors are in High Demand

The business has an urgent need for nearly 240 thousand workers and specialists in various fields. The biggest shortages are of tailors, salespeople, machine operators and cooks. Over 70% of employers in Bulgaria find it difficult to find staff in these areas. The data are from a study by the Employment Agency.

A diner in Blagoevgrad has been looking for staff for more than a week. They need a baker and a salesman. The salary is over BGN 1,000 per month, but there are almost no applicants.

"No! One or two girls appeared there and that's it. There are no people, no job applicants," says Dimitar Bakalov, a baker and owner of bakeries.

The situation is similar in the neighboring shops, restaurants and cafes, where notices are also posted that they are looking for staff.

"No matter who you ask from the colleagues, almost all establishments are looking for either bartenders or waiters. Let's leave it at that, those people who appear neither have any education, nor experience, nor have any practice," says Dimitar Bakalov.

More than 500 vacancies are also announced in the Labor Offices in Blagoevgrad region, most of them are in the field of services and trade. And although employers complain that it is increasingly difficult to find staff, the region reports a positive trend towards a decrease in unemployment.

"In the last few months, it is striking that we have two municipalities with an extremely low unemployment rate on the territory of the Blagoevgrad region. This is the municipality of Blagoevgrad itself with a 3.7% unemployment rate and the municipality of Sandanski with 3.9%," said Stanislava Popovska, director of the Labor Bureau in Blagoevgrad.

Blagoevgrad region, however, remains at the...

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