site.btaLabour Minister: Monthly Minimum Wage to Increase to BGN 1,077 Starting 2025

Although the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation failed to reach a consensus on the monthly minimum wage earlier this month, caretaker Minister of Labour and Social Policy Ivaylo Ivanov told a press conference here on Wednesday that starting 2025, the wage will be set at BGN 1,077. Ivanov's announcement comes after the Council of Ministers adopted an ordinance setting the minimum wage on Wednesday.

This is an increase of 15.4% or BGN 144 more than the minimum wage for 2024, the Minister said. He reported that some 430,000 people work for a minimum wage across the country. This is the only option for the Government to increase wages, Ivanov said.

According to Ivanov, the minimum wage should cover the minimum cost of living for a person. As for the other wages, it is the employer's duty to adjust them. The Minister said that all institutions dependent on the state budget will have the financial capacity to increase the minimum wage.