Attitudes Towards Work And The Market Economy In Bulgaria

The political changes of the early 90s of the twentieth century in Bulgaria laid the foundations for a real labor market and major reforms in the hitherto existing social protection systems and the development of human capital. The transition from centrally planned to a market economy in Bulgaria is expressed in massive transformations in the ownership and structure of the national economy. In these adverse economic conditions the formation of the labor market and social protection policies went through many twists because of the inconsistent policy of frequently changing governments and their different attitude towards policies on unemployment and employment. Next years, acquiring the features of a developed market economy, the national economy get opportunities for further integration to the current global economic and social processes. At the same time the opportunities are widened for participation in the common European and global networks, schemes, different initiatives which unite efforts to overcome the economic and social problems. The latest financial and economic crisis of 2008 found Bulgaria insufficiently prepared to implement an integrated approach to the social sphere, and in particular in the development of the labor market, social protection and human resources according to changing unfavorable macroeconomic environment. In practice, applied are various measures and programs borrowed from foreign experience in an attempt to approbation on regional and national level without having made a preliminary comprehensive analysis. Current study makes a profound analyses of the characteristics of labor market development in Bulgaria and development of the active social policies in these periods of active transformations in social and economic spheres.

The political changes of the early 90-s of the twentieth century in Bulgaria lay the foundations for the development of a real labor market and major reforms in the hitherto existing social protection systems and the development of human capital. The transition from a centrally planned to a market economy in Bulgaria results in huge transformations in the ownership and structure of the national economy. These processes lead to a significant downturn in the functioning of the national economy. In these adverse economic conditions, the development of the labor market and social protection policies go through many turns due to the inconsistent policy of frequently changing governments and their different attitude towards policies on unemployment and employment. Further, the entrance of the country into the European Union challenged again the still developing economy and social system which soon after that are deeply influenced by the economic crises. The study presented outlines the main characteristics of different periods of labor market development making analyses of the statistical data available and it provides conclusions on the topic in close connection to the development of economic and social policies.

This research paper is a result of several years of efforts related to the study of the social policies applied on unemployment and employment in Bulgaria and in particular a study of the impact of the National Program "From Social Assistance to Employment" of the national labor market, as the opportunities for social interpretation and reintegration of the members of vulnerable groups have been considered.

English Abstract: After the Second World War, the real conditions for full employment enable almost all countries to concentrate their efforts on issues of labor efficiency, participants' behavior in the labor process, their attitude towards work. After the 1970's, significant changes in the economic and social life were carried out around the world, which reflected both the "attitude to work" and the labor relations in the sense of defining this concept. Deepening discrepancies between the supply and demand of the labor force put forward the concept of the labor market, in which the emphasis is placed on the relationship between employers and employees. The main signs of the so-called "shadow economy" and "shadow labor market" appear. Quantitative and qualitative discrepancies lead to the need for measures, on the one hand, to reduce the supply of labor and, on the other hand, to stimulate demand for labor. Important problems in this period are the marginalization of certain population groups and growing inflation. For the countries of the European Union, the United States and Japan, the period after the 1980s is characterized by well-known achievements in economic growth, which has made it possible for the corresponding growth in employment, albeit at a lower rate. Structural changes in the economy are of such a nature that the use of old methods of regulating employment and unemployment is already inadequate.

Providing a detailed empirical account of the ongoing political, social and economic transformation of the country, this book assesses the post-communist period in Bulgaria and examines the development of the democratization process so far.

Economics is taught in some form in the secondary schools of nations throughout the world. The subject is rarely taught in elementary schools, and while economics courses are offered in universities, the majority of students end their formal education with secondary school. Thus, the best opportunity for the economic education of the youth of a nation occurs in secondary schools. This book examines economic education at this critical level of the educational system. The teaching of economics in secondary schools varies across countries. These differences occur because of history, the structure of education, and other national factors. At the same time, there are common elements in the economic education of many countries, especially in content coverage. This contrast between the common features and the uniqueness of economic education in secondary schools of major industrial nations exemplifies the international perspective presented in this book. The international perspective is developed in the six sections of the volume. The first section discusses why nations should include economics in school curricula, and presents a framework for teaching economics that should have global appeal. Dissension and consensus on economic issues among North American and European economists are examined in the second section. The third section surveys the U.S. research literature on precollege economic education and assesses the current state of economics instruction in U.S. schools. The economics curricula and educational practices in seven other nations -- the U.K., Canada, Japan, Germany, Austria, Korea, and Australia -- are described in the fourth and fifth sections. The fifth section also presents international comparisons of economic understanding based on national testing in six of those nations. The sixth and final section explores the role of economic education in centrally planned economies, and its effects on the transition to a market economy, using Russia, Bulgaria, and China as case studies.