2024-03-24 09:52:23
- The trend is in clusters of smaller municipalities around the capital, Plovdiv, Varna and Gabrovo
- The dominance of the public sector in the labor market is increasing in many regions
In as many as 224 municipalities in 2022, the public sector provides a higher average salary than the private sector despite catching up at the national level in recent years. Moreover, in 42 municipalities it creates more than half of employment, writes in an analysis of the Institute for Market Economy.
142 thousand people work in the public sector in Sofia, 35 thousand in Plovdiv, 27 thousand in Varna. In the capital, 627 thousand people are in the private sector, in Plovdiv – 110 thousand, in Varna – 97 thousand.
In Sofia, the average salary in the public sector for 2022 is BGN 2,199, and in the private sector – BGN 2,538. However, in Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas, the average “state” salaries are higher than those in private business.
Clearly visible clusters with higher private sector salaries than in the public sector are forming around Sofia, Plovdiv, Gabrovo, Varna.
The increasing lead of the public sector in employment and wages in many local economies has significant implications for growth potential and future development trajectory. The most important is that almost everywhere, in general, work for the state – be it in a school, in the municipality or in the police – is more attractive than that in the private sector, commented the IPI.