Bulgaria's Trade Unions to Support Govt Until New Election Code is Adopted

Domestic | June 26, 2013, Wednesday // 15:24|  views

Trade union leaders Konstantin Trenchev (R) and Plamen Dimitrov (L), photo by BGNES

Representatives of Bulgarian trade unions have suggested that the current government should remain in office until a new Election Code is adopted, cautioning about mass strikes in the metallurgy  and "ticking bombs" in the manufacturing sector.

In a Wednesday interview for the morning broadcast of bTV, Plamen Dimitrov, Chair of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CITUB), argued that it was becoming increasingly clear that the current Parliament would have a lifespan of no more than a few months at best.

He argued, however, that the scenario of the February protests, which led to the resignation of the center-right GERB government before any important decisions were made, was to be avoided.

Dimitrov emphasized that if the government resigned on Thursday, there would be no new Election Code in place.

The CITUB Chair suggested that people would end up betrayed unless they realized that the adoption of a new Election Code took some time.

Konstantin Trenchev, Chair of Labor Confederation "Podkrepa", said that it was high time for politicians to understand that things had come to a turning point.

He argued that Bulgarian citizens demanded integrity from the ones in power, while local politicians were exclusively motivated by the advantages their public office brought them.

Dimitrov underscored the need for urgent decisions in the energy sector, especially as regards setting the price of coal.

He warned that Bulgarian miners were gearing up for protests at the end of the week.

Dimitrov also cautioned about growing social discontent over the problems plaguing the Bulgarian Posts, the State Railways Company, BDZ, and arms manufacturer VMZ Sopot.

The CITUB Chair claimed that the Maritsa Iztok and Bobov Dol thermal power plants had turned into "ticking bombs" as a result of the failure to update coal prices for years on end.

He went on to say that low incomes were a major problem in Bulgaria, hinting at the difficulties which the next heating season would exacerbate.

Dimitrov spoke in favor of increasing the minimum wage, introducing food vouchers and other social policy measures.

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Tags: Labor Confederation, Podkrepa Labor Confederation, Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria, Plamen Dimitrov, Plamen Oresharski, Bulgarian government, GERB government

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