NSI staff protest pay demands

Bulgaria’s Union of Administrative Employees, affiliated with the Podkrepa labor federation, has launched workplace demonstrations at the National Statistical Institute, where staff members are demanding salary adjustments to match national income averages. Employees at the central Sofia headquarters and regional offices are seeking an additional 2.5 million leva in next year’s budget allocation to support compensation increases.

Atanaska Krasteva, representing the union federation at the institute, stated that workers want a 20 percent pay raise rather than the proposed 5 percent adjustment planned for a second consecutive year. The organization employs 968 people across its central and six territorial offices, where staff turnover has become problematic as private sector opportunities attract younger professionals away from government service.