KRIB requests a change in the Law on measures and actions during the state of emergency, announced by a decision of the National Assembly of March 13, 2020.

MRS ANNA ALEXANDROVA
CHAIRMAN OF
THE LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
TO THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

ABOUT: ZID of the Law on measures and actions during the state of emergency, announced by a decision of the National Assembly of March 13, 2020.

DEAR MRS ALEXANDROVA,

On behalf of the Confederation of Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria, we are addressing you with a request for a change in the Law on Measures and Actions During the State of Emergency, announced by a decision of the National Assembly of March 13, 2020, in the part of the widely proclaimed support of state side in a 60/40 ratio. We insist on changing this measure in the interest of business and workers and turning it into an effective one that will really support the economy in the country and fulfill its goals, namely - preserving jobs and protecting the lives and health of the people.

In this regard, we offer to your attention three options for amending § 6 of the PZR of the Law on measures and actions during the state of emergency, which will help to neutralize the negative impact of this measure on the activities of companies, which is now present.

1. Preservation of the 60/40 ratio, with the state taking over not only part of the workers' remuneration, but also the insurance contributions in the same ratio.

Motives:

By maintaining the 60/40 share of the state's gross remuneration of employees and the insurance contributions in the same ratio, the disposable income of the employees and the employer will be preserved. At the same time, this operation will guarantee the income part of the National Insurance Institute from insurances. For its part, the state will receive a guaranteed payment of the insurance contributions, which will go directly from the budget to the National Insurance Institute.

1. We suggest changing the 60/40 ratio to an 80/20 ratio.

Motives:

The 60/40 measure has gained a lot of scope after the recent changes in the PMS project. The access of companies to this measure is no longer limited to those that are explicitly mentioned in the annex to the decree, but it can be used by employers from all sectors of the economy whose sales revenue has decreased by 20 percent or more.

The opportunity provided to apply for wage compensation under this scheme is essential not only for employees but also for employers. The problem is that with such a ratio and keeping 100% of the salary, the burden is entirely borne by the employer and the ratio changes radically. When calculations are made for wages, insurance and taxes, the worker's income remains unchanged, and the state's participation is less than the legally determined amount. In this regard and on the basis of the calculations, in order to achieve the pre-set idea of ​​real compensation, the ratio should be changed to 80 to 20. The proposal is that the costs of changing the scheme should be within the planned budget of over BGN 1 billion .at no additional cost.

1. A reduction in wages for the period of the crisis agreed between employers and trade unions

Motives:

This is one of the possible options for preserving the jobs and taking the burden from the workers and employers. An extreme measure that will lead to a reduction in the disposable income of workers and employees, but will largely guarantee their jobs and the burden will be shared jointly between them and the employers.

We believe that if actions are not taken quickly to change the law in this part of it, we are threatened by a wave of bankruptcies of companies, incl. of structural determinants for the economy, as well as an increase in unemployment, intensification of the recession and a collapse in revenues not only in the country's budget, but also in the incomes of the population.

With respect,

Eugene Ivanov
Ex. Director and member of the Management Board