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Deputy Minister David Sukalinski: A synchronised and proactive labour migration policy is a top priority

Deputy Minister David Sukalinski: A synchronised and proactive labour migration policy is a top priority

In the framework of the initiative of the Ministry of Economy and Science, an analysis has been prepared to facilitate access to the labour market of third-country workers for the needs of Bulgarian business

‘Due to the identified labour shortage and the challenges facing the Bulgarian economy, the formation and pursuit of a synchronised and proactive labour migration policy is a priority of paramount importance.’ This was said by the Deputy Minister of Economy and Industry Dr. David Sukalinski at the opening of a round table on ‘Untapped opportunities for importing labour’. The event was organized by the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) and the India-Bulgaria Business Chamber. In the words of Deputy Minister Sukalinski, it would also be essential to create a centralised information system that could periodically provide data, collected according to various characteristics, which would provide information on the foreigners who have already received residence permits for work: on the number of workers, which countries they are from, what type, in what employment, in which sectors, educational and qualification level, duration of this employment and other data that would be useful for this system.

Deputy Minister David Sukalinski: A synchronised and proactive labour migration policy is a top priority

He announced an initiative of the Ministry of Economy and Industry, within the framework of which an analysis has been prepared to simplify and facilitate the procedures for access to the labour market of highly qualified personnel from third countries for the needs of Bulgarian business. The main conclusions of the analysis underline that the labour shortage in Bulgaria poses serious challenges to enterprises and to the sustainability of the economy.

The study of the Economic and Social Council, which prepared the analysis, shows that the establishment of the labour needs survey system would be a key factor in supporting business and stimulating the growth of the Bulgarian economy, Dr Sukalinski said. He added that the system should take into account the different types of employment needed by the business, as well as the time horizon and duration of the respective employment. The analysis points out that the development of annual programmes for the provision of third-country workers for the different sectors of the economy, with a particular focus on seasonal employment, namely tourism and agriculture, would also be of great benefit.

According to Deputy Minister David Sukalinski, Bulgaria has signed agreements with four countries in the field of labour migration – Israel, Moldova, Armenia and Georgia. ‘According to the Economic and Social Council, bilateral agreements in the field of labour migration are an appropriate means of ensuring security and predictability, reducing bureaucracy and speeding up the recruitment process’, he added.

Dr. Sukalinski pointed to dual training, vocational education, as well as qualification and retraining courses as opportunities to solve the human resources deficit. ‘All of them are currently being used, but the observed shortage of skilled labour for the business shows that the possibility of attracting qualified personnel from third countries to meet the needs of the business in the short term should be explored and implemented’, he stressed.

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