THE ROLE OF TRADE UNIONS IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN BULGARIA UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF EUROPEAN INTEGRATION

Abstract

The article is the result of the joint scientific activity of Ukrainian and Bulgarian scientists in the framework of studying the problems of modernization of public administration of post-communist countries in the conditions of European integration. The documentary basis of the study was the Constitution and other legal acts of the Republic of Bulgaria, statistical data and normative documents of professional unions of Bulgaria, materials posted on their websites and scientific works of Bulgarian and Ukrainian scientists. The relevance of the topic and the low level of its scientific study are argued. Trade unions are considered an important element of the public administration system and a mandatory component of labor market regulation. In the course of the study, the authors used the methods characteristic of the science of public administration: observation, comparison, description, analogy. A systemic and functional approach was applied, which allowed considering the development of the trade union movement in unity with the tasks of economic, social, political, and cultural development of Bulgaria. The analysis of the documentary base on the problems of the trade union movement was also important. The history of the creation and formation of trade union organizations in Bulgaria is traced and their evolution in the period of post-communist reforms is examined in depth. The norms of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Labor Code, the Criminal Code and other normative legal acts were analyzed in the part that regulates the rights of workers and their protection by trade unions. The authors pay special attention to the analysis of the activities of the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria (KNSB) and the Confederation of Labor «Support». Changes in the areas of activity and trade unions related to changes in the labor market were noted. Innovations in the labor market related to the individualization and informatization of labor are highlighted, which requires flexibility of the labor market and increased attention to employees. The changes associated with the process of Europeanization are also characterized. The growth of the initiatives of trade unions in the field of nature protection, the growth of activity to protect the rights of migrants, the emergence of new spheres of activity (civil service) and others were noted.