site.btaGeneral Labour Inspectorate Establishes 99,933 Violations in First Half of 2025

Bulgaria's General Labour Inspectorate has carried out 25,897 inspections in the first half of 2025, the executive agency said on Wednesday. The inspectors established 99,933 violations of labour legislation, of which 56,199 concerned health and safety at work, while 43,030 concerned labour relations.

There were 1,765 cases of work without an employment contract, compared to 1,614 in January-June 2024. 

The amount of delayed wages identified was BGN 5.4 million, including amounts for prior periods. Following the intervention of the Labour Inspectorate, more than BGN 3 million in delayed wages were paid, including amounts for previous periods.

During the reporting period, 5,418 administrative offences were established. The amount of penalty decrees and approved settlements that entered into force was over BGN 7.5 million.

In the first six months of 2025, labour inspectors stopped construction work, work with machinery and equipment a total of 702 times, compared to 385 times in the first half of 2024. Fifty-six employees were suspended from work for lack of legal capacity and/or non-compliance with safe work rules. These measures are used to prevent serious accidents at work, and in some cases they also save lives, the General Labour Inspectorate said.

During the period under review, the trend of increasing work permits granted to minors continued, with 8,766 permits granted, compared to 7,594 in the same period last year.

In January 2025, labour inspectors carried out two emergency campaigns in the construction sector due to the active construction season and the risk of work-related injuries and the use of undeclared workforce. There were 651 cases of work without an employment contract detected in the sector, the press release said.