Minimum wage

The minimum labor cost in Serbia will be increased to RSD 143 (EUR 1.2) per hour, starting in 2017.

This is according to the president of the Serbian Association of Employers, Nebojsa Atanackovic.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic announced on Thursday that the minimum labor price that is currently being negotiated will be increased.

An increase in the non-taxable portion of wages is also being considered, to facilitate employers, she said, according to the government.

The Serbian government's Social and Economic Council, unions and the Serbian Association of Employers, have launched negotiations over the minimum wage for 2018. Labour leaders face an uphill battle, EURACTIV.rs reports.

Prime Minister Ana Brnabic announced on Thursday that the minimum labor price that is currently being negotiated will be increased.

An increase in the non-taxable portion of wages is also being considered, to facilitate employers, she said, according to the government.

The minimum wage for a chief teacher will be BGN 836, and for a senior teacher - BGN 792. The minimum wage of a school principal from September 1 will be BGN 950 and the deputy directors - BGN 887.

The Ministry of Education has announced minimum wages in school education as of September 1, 2017, following a promised increase of 15% by the government, according to BGNews. 

During the last 17 years, 906 thousand Bulgarians in active age have left the country permanently; The situation is catastrophic, said the President of  the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria (CITUB) Plamen Dimitrov, according to bTV.

In his words, the crisis can only be tackled with urgent measures to increase people incomes.

The government adopted a decree confirming the amount of the minimum monthly salary for the country to be BGN 460. This was necessary after the Supreme Administrative Court overturned the previous decree of the parliament on the minimum wage in May.

The vast majority of Syrians in Turkey are employed in unregistered work for significantly lower wages compared to their Turkish counterparts, a new survey has shown.

According to a survey by the United Metalworkers Union with 604 Syrian and Turkish textile workers, Syrians work for wages that are 25 percent lower on average than Turkish employees.

The government sealed the collective bargaining deal with the union confederation of public workers and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security on July 3. 

The contract includes a 7.5 percent raise for the first half of 2017 and a 5 percent raise for the second half of the year, to be followed by a 3.5 percent raise in each half of 2018, plus wage improvements.

Apart from undertaking several long-term daunting tasks, which will require much more time and dedication, the new cabinet of Prime Minister-designate Zoran Zaev plans to start work by proposing several swift regulations aimed at easing some financial burdens on hard-pressed citizens.