Public Media Workers in Bulgaria Demand 15% Pay Increase Amid Nationwide Protests

Workers at public media Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), Bulgarian National Television (BNT), and the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA) are staging a protest, demanding a minimum 15% salary increase. The demonstration, organized under the slogan 'Work in the media has value,' is set to begin at noon at the intersection in front of Sofia University 'St. Kliment Ohridski,' with traffic in the area expected to be disrupted.

The Confederation of Bulgarian Trade Unions and the Confederation of Labor 'Podkrepa' are leading the protest, representing the interests of employees in the three public media outlets. Union leaders emphasize that to meet the demand for a 15% wage increase, an additional 14 million leva must be allocated from the state budget — 6 million leva for BNT, 5 million leva for BNR, and 3 million leva for BTA, according to Todor Kapitanov, vice-president of CITUB.

Simultaneously, the general directors of BNT and BNR, Emil Koshlukov and Milen Mitev, will present information regarding the current financial difficulties facing the media at a meeting of the parliamentary committee on culture and media later in the day.

The protest is not limited to public media workers. Organizers are inviting all media professionals to join the action. Across the country, demonstrations will take place in various cities, highlighting the struggle for fair pay in the media sector.

As part of the protest in Sofia, mock program editions will be staged with satirical titles such as 'Low Income First,' 'The Day Begins Without Money,' and 'One Hundred Percent Awake and Poor.' Despite the protest, BNT has stated that their programming will continue as scheduled, with no interruptions anticipated.