site.btaLabour Market Remains Stable Mid-Year – Employment Agency

The labour market in Bulgaria remains stable in the middle of the year and continues to develop positively, the Employment Agency reported on Tuesday. In June 2025, a total of 13,634 people found employment – 13,117 registered unemployed and a further 517 employed persons, students, and pensioners who sought support for new job opportunities through labour office services.

As of the end of June 2025, the number of registered unemployed in the country stood at 144,186, with the registered unemployment rate at 5.09%. This marks a decrease of 0.24 percentage points compared to the same month last year.

There has been significant progress in including vulnerable groups in employment – 1,168 individuals, including people with disabilities, young people without work experience, individuals over the age of 55, and the long-term unemployed, began jobs through subsidised employment programmes. Of these, 1,089 were placed under projects funded by the Human Resources Development Programme 2021–2027, co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).

Roma and youth mediators, as well as labour office teams across the country, are actively working to motivate economically inactive individuals. In June alone, over 5,190 people who had not previously participated in the labour market were encouraged to take their first steps towards employment.

More than 17,800 vouchers were issued during the month, available to both unemployed and employed persons. The initiative aims to help individuals improve their skills and adapt to the demands of the modern economy, especially in light of rapid digitalisation and technological transformation.

In June, employers declared a total of 8,509 job vacancies on the primary labour market via labour offices. The largest share was in manufacturing (27.9%), followed by retail trade and motor vehicle repair (12.3%), public administration (12.2%), hospitality and food services (9.6%), education (9.5%), administrative and support services (6.4%), and construction (4.4%).

The most in-demand occupations for the month included: care workers; personal service staff; labourers in extractive, manufacturing, construction and transport sectors; sales assistants; machine and equipment operators; waste collectors; teachers; workers in food, clothing, and wood product manufacturing; metalworkers, mechanical engineers, and craftspeople; drivers of vehicles and mobile equipment; cleaners and helpers; assemblers, and others.