Bulgaria Renews Calls for Unfettered Job Rights across Europe

Ten EU member states have kept job restrictions on citizens of the countries that joined the EU in 2007. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Bulgaria pins great expectations for an open door labor market in the ten older member states that still impose restrictions for the job-seekers from the country and its northern neighbor Romania.

Talking from the rostrum of the European Parliament, members of the ruling center-right GERB party called on the European Commission and their colleagues to support the lifting of labour restrictions, which according to them are an example of discrimination.

Belgium is one of the ten EU member states that have kept job restrictions on citizens of the two countries that joined the EU in 2007.

The UK, Germany and Austria have also retained labour market restrictions for citizens of Bulgaria and Romania despite a recommendation from the European Commission that they be lifted.

Bulgarians and Romanians are also required to secure a work permit in order to take up a job in Ireland.

The other EU-25 Member States that have notified the Commission of their decision to continue to apply national law on labour market access after 1 January 2009 include Italy, France, Luxembourg, Malta and the Netherlands.

The presence of eastern European workers is extremely sensitive in Austria and Germany, which border the poorer region and the situation became even worse when recession started to boost unemployment rate.

The European Commission and the European Parliament can only recommend to the member states to open their labor markets for Bulgarians and Romanians, but it is up to the countries themselves to take the final decision.

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