BCCI President: Wage Hikes Due to Workforce Shortage Won't Help Economy

Kaloyan Kirilov

BCCI President Tsvetan Simeonov (BTA Photo/Vladimir Shokov)

Sofia,

11.06.2024 13:49

(BTA)

The President of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), Tsvetan Simeonov expressed concerns that merely raising wages due to workforce shortages does not foster sustainable economic growth, speaking at a BCCI meeting on Tuesday. He emphasized the need for skilled labour and innovation to enhance productivity and align with European standards. The meeting, co-hosted by Human Power BG, focused on strategies for importing foreign workers.

BCCI needs Bulgaria to have sufficient number of skilled and unskilled workforce to catch up with other European Union countries. Despite satisfactory growth rates, BCCI highlighted that Bulgaria must significantly advance in terms of volume and prospects, Simeonov said.

He added that BCCI is actively working to enable Bulgarian companies to access foreign labour and highlighted that this effort is part of a broader, long-term initiative to tackle labour shortages, a challenge that is not unique to Bulgaria but is also prevalent in European and US companies.

Simeonov recalled a meeting at the Chamber on importing manpower from India, where it was decided to convene a task force under the Economy Ministry, which has not happened. Tsvetanov said the Chamber's efforts would continue with the new government. He noted that few in the country opposed the import of workers from third countries, and even trade unions recognized their inability to meet demand for skilled labour.

/KK/