site.btaAs Rates of Undeclared Work Drop, So Does Risk of Exploitation, Says Labour Minister

At the opening of a conference entitled "Improving cooperation: Developing cross-border approaches to counter labour exploitation" here on Friday, Labour and Social Policy Minister Borislav Gutsanov said that as the rates of undeclared work are dropping, so is the risk of exploitation, the organizers reported.

At the forum, held at the initiative of the National Commission for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (NCCTHB), in cooperation with the European Labour Authority and the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, Gutsanov reported that 38,000 inspections have been carried out between January and September to ensure compliance with labour legislation. Nearly 2,800 workers were found to be working without a contract of employment. The amount of approved penalty orders that have come into force to date is over BGN 11 million. According to the latest data, over BGN 1.7 billion more has entered the state treasury in the form of health insurance contributions.

The Minister was adamant that working without an employment contract will not be tolerated, as it opens the door to labour exploitation, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation. Institutions such as the NCCTHB and the General Labour Inspectorate Executive Agency work actively to counteract attempts to violate workers' rights or involve them in modern slavery.

The Minister called on the public to learn about their labour rights, so that they do not fall prey to unscrupulous employers.