FOUR-DAY WORKWEEK: IS IT POSSIBLE IN BULGARIA?

Various countries periodically attempt to introduce (albeit mostly experimentally) the four-day workweek model. The Ministry of Labor in Greece recently presented a bill proposing a 10-hour workday, four days a week. The Spanish parliament rejected a proposal to reduce the workweek without changes in pay. The government’s draft had proposed reducing it to 37.5 hours instead of the current 40.

What does the Bulgarian Labor Code currently provide, what flexible solutions for organizing working hours exist, what would be the economic and organizational effects of potentially introducing a four-day workweek, which sectors could implement it, and where would it create difficulties?

Velichka Mikova, National Secretary of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB), commented that the possibility of such a change has not yet been discussed among social partners.

Currently, the Labor Code allows for flexible employment, and it can also be included in collective labor agreements.

A potential reduction of the workweek is also linked to staff shortages in various sectors of the economy and the need to balance work with family responsibilities – the issue of reducing working hours is being discussed in several European countries.

Jasmina Saryivanova, Chief Expert in “Social Dialogue” at the Bulgarian Industrial Association, also noted that the current Bulgarian legislation does not pose any obstacle to implementing a four-day workweek where applicable. She added that some companies already apply it, mainly in accounting, where workloads are concentrated on specific days of the week, so the interests of the company, employees, and clients are not compromised due to the specific nature of the work.

For now, the existing legal framework in Bulgaria remains in force, alongside challenges related to overtime, wage payments, and, not least, the role of clauses in collective labor agreements and various arrangements between employers and their employees depending on the nature of the work, in an effort to find a better balance between professional and personal life.