Socioeconomics

An Athens prosecutor ordered the arrest of two doctors on negligence charges on Friday, in connection with the alleged suicide of a 44-year-old homeless man who fell to his death from the fourth floor of a city center hotel leased by the City of Athens to serve as a homeless shelter.

A man aged between 40 and 45 years old fell to his death from the fourth floor of a homeless shelter in central Athens on Friday morning.

Authorities said they suspect that the homeless man, who was not named, killed himself. Homelessness has been on the rise during the crisis. It is estimated there are some 30,000 homeless people in Greece.

Bulgaria is the fifth poorest country in Europe, according to a study of the Serbian Statistical Institute.

A total of 1.8 million people in Serbia live in poverty. The country ranks first among European countries with 24.6 percent of its population below the poverty line.

A new initiative by local street magazine Schedia (Life Raft) aims to heighten awareness about homelessness and increase the integration of those sleeping on the street by having homeless citizens leading tours of Athens.

Turkey’s failure in narrowing the gender pay gap has been highlighted by a United Nations Development Program (UNDP) index, which shows how the gross national income (GNI) is three times higher for men.

The Turkish automotive market has annually contracted by 7.4 percent in August, marking a remarkable decline in the pace of contraction that gripped the sector since the beginning of the year The contraction in the Turkish automotive market slowed down in August thanks to the diminished impact of the currency rate and the recovery in the commercial vehicles market.

Over a million people in war-torn Somalia are struggling in conditions close to famine, with hunger and drought due to worsen, United Nations experts said Sept. 2.

The Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA) has opposed the proposal to increase the minimum wage and the social security contributions.

BIA explains in a media statement that it firmly opposed the plans to cope with the chronic deficit in the systems of social security and health insurance through an administrative increase in the minimum insurance income.

The Labor, Social Security and Welfare Ministry is preparing to launch a work experience program for unemployed youths aged between 18 and 24, through private sector jobs, as part of a new action plan organized by the ministry, dubbed ‘Youth Guarantees.’

Yordan Hristoskov, Bulgaria's caretaker Minister of Labor and Social Policy, has suggested that a minimum wage hike from BGN 340 to BGN 400 will not harm the business sector.

In a Thursday interview for private TV station bTV, Hristoskov said that it was high time to do something about Bulgaria still being at the bottom of the EU ranking by guaranteed minimum income.