The Government’s key objectives in the labor sphere are private sector employment and creation of 64,000 new jobs by active measures for employment, increasing the minimum wage to 16,000 Denars (by the end of the term) and greater protection of labor rights. Part of the measures will stimulate higher remunerations across the labor market, with the final aim to increase the medium net wage to 30,000 Denars. The Government pledges to implement the following key measures and activities:

Increase the minimum wage to 12,000 Denars in the first year of the term. This measure will be applied to the three least-remunerated sectors as well. The Government will introduce budgetary financial support for least-remunerated sectors in view of gradual accommodation of this obligation.

Allocate 22 million Euro to active employment measures. Efforts to increase these funds will be made on yearly basis with the aim of reaching 33 million Euro by the end of the term. 

Stimulate the opening of better-paid jobs. The Government will introduce new lines of support for small and medium enterprises for employment of unemployed persons, aimed at opening new jobs, injection of liquidity in enterprises and filling the Pension’s Fund gaps. Support will be provided to three different categories of unemployed persons, implying financial support from 72,000 to 162,000 Denars (paid in advance to the enterprise) provided that for 12 months the employee is paid gross salary higher than the medium wage paid in the previous year. 

Introduce the “Youth Guarantee” project to ensure that all young people receive a good quality offer of employment, continued education, apprenticeship or job traineeship within a period of four months of becoming unemployed or leaving formal education.

Adopt a new Labor Code aimed at securing true labor protection. It will establish a Register for overtime working hours at the Public Revenue Office, collective agreements will become obligatory for all legal entities with over 20 employees, while trade unions will be obliged to register only in the Central Registry. 

Adopt Law on Social Entrepreneurship to ease the access of socially vulnerable groups of citizens to the labor market. Social enterprises will give vulnerable groups the possibility to run the enterprises, bring independent decisions on managing the revenues and their reinvestment in social purposes.

Legally limit the duration of Temporary Employment Contracts, linking them with the job position, instead of the performer. In cases of newly opened positions, Temporary Employment Contracts will have to be transformed in full-time employment within 6 months. 

Adopt legal guarantees whereby all uninterrupted employment lasting more than 9 months and continuing into the next calendar year (seasonal work) will be transformed in full-time employment. 

The amount and number of severance pay given to workers in cases of redundancy will be increased by 20%.

Introduce 2-3 years of employment bans in cases of redundancy. Should the employer need to employ a person for equal or similar work, he/she will be obliged to first contact the person previously laid off because of redundancy.

Adopt legal guarantees to protect employees in cases of employer insolvencies.

Gender mainstream collective bargaining on all levels in view of empowering and protecting women workers.

Guarantee the right to reinstatement after maternity leave and maintaining the same position for at least a year

Improve labor rights by introducing additional protection of pregnant workers

Introduce legal grounds for joint parental leave in the first 1-3 months (at the end of the 3rd month, the mother or father continues until the end of the parental leave). In cases of twin/triple births, (joint) parental leave lasts 3-6 months (after which, the mother or father continues until the end of the parental leave). In cases of birth of a second or third child, the (joint) parental leave lasts 3-6 months (with expiration of 3-6 months, the mother or father continues until the end of the parental leave).