Bulgaria Update: A recap of the latest Labour Code amendments in force as of 1 August 2022

Some amendments to the Labour Code came into force on 1 August. We summarize the most important of them.

New probationary period, is introduced for employees hired for less than one year. The probationary period in these cases is 1 month, as opposed to the regular probationary period of 6 months.‍
Additional work – an employer may restrict an employee from working for another employer only if the employee’s contract of employment contains a prohibition on grounds of the protection of commercial confidentiality and/or the prevention of conflicts of interest. Thus, from now on general prohibitions on working for another employer will not be consistent with the law.
The employee has the right to propose in writing to the employer a change in the employment contract (e.g. from a fixed-term contract to an open-ended contract, and from a part-time contract to a full-time contract). If the employer refuses, must, within one month, provide a motivated written reply setting out the reasons for his decision.
With regard to the right of employees to propose amendments to the employment contract, a special right is introduced for employees who have to care for a sick relative. They now could propose relaxations to their working arrangements in order to reconcile family and professional obligations.‍
Parental leave of 2 (two) months for raising a child up to the age of 8 (eight) years is introduced for the father/adopter, on condition that he has not taken the other child-related leave provided for in the Labour Code.‍
When introducing a new employee to the company, the employer must, among other things, acquaint them with:
the terms and conditions for termination of the employment contract;
information on training provided by the employer;
the internal wage regulations.
By Dimitrov, Petrov & Co., Bulgaria, a Transatlantic Law International Affiliated Firm.

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