Salaries and pensions in Bulgaria are set to be increased from 1st July. The minimum wage in the country will “jump” from BGN 360 to BGN 380.
This will be the second raise of the lowest salary in the country this year after 1st January, when it crawled from BGN 340 to BGN 360. While the first increase affected around 200 000 workers, the current one will add to the bank accounts of 248 000 Bulgarians. The gradual increase in the minimum wage is an essential tool to combat the informal economy, the Government said. The three-year budget forecast is envisaging to boost the lowest monthly remuneration to BGN 420 in 2016 and BGN 460 in 2017.
However, the increase in the pensions will be even more moderate than that in the minimum wage. According to the Swiss formula it will be only 1.9%. According to experts, the reason for the miniscule increase is the negative inflation of last year.