Today, the new Collective Labor Agreement in "SOF Connect" EAD was signed – a result of long, difficult, and intensive negotiations between the management of the company and the trade union organizations.

The negotiation process went through a number of complex topics where the sides had serious differences. From the very beginning, the employer proposed to limit some of the benefits agreed upon in the active CLA, including regarding leaves, retirement compensations, and other social rights.

Throughout the entire negotiation process, the Federation of Transport Trade Unions defended the consistent position that the new Collective Labor Agreement must build upon the provisions of the Labor Code, and not reduce them to the legal minimum.

The President of the FTTU Eng. Aleksandar Shopov repeatedly emphasized that the trade union organization would not make a final decision without consulting its members.

„In our organization, decisions are made from the bottom up. Before we take any decision, we are obliged to consult our trade union members. It was they who set the clear red lines in the negotiations, and one of the most important for them was the preservation of leave amounts.“

In implementation of this principle, the FTTU organized a general assembly of its trade union members in "SOF Connect", at which all proposals of the employer were presented in detail, with an open discussion held on the controversial texts. After the discussion, the members expressed their opinion regarding the proposed compromise option, which gave a mandate to the trade union team to finalize the negotiations and proceed to the signing of the new Collective Labor Agreement.

In the course of the talks, Eng. Shopov also raised the question of why the employer does not use the mechanism provided in the Labor Code to encourage employees to use their accumulated paid annual leave – a practice applied by a number of other employers, instead of seeking to limit the agreed rights.

The FTTU also argued its demands with the good results of the company. During the negotiations, the federation's president emphasized that the increased passenger traffic, stable economic indicators, and realized profit give reason for the guaranteed increase of basic labor remunerations to be higher.

„The Collective Labor Agreement was not created to repeat the Labor Code, but to build upon the rights of workers. If the goal is for all benefits to be reduced to the legal minimum, then the meaning of the CLA itself is lost, and we can hardly talk about a true social partnership.“

After many meetings and mutual concessions, the parties reached a compromise solution, which preserved a significant part of the benefits of the workers and improved the employer's initial proposals.

Among the most important agreed parameters are:

Preservation of the main paid annual leave, as its sizes remain unchanged, provided that the required length of service has been acquired with the employer.

Preservation of the "seniority" class - 1.1 %.

A compromise was achieved on the topic of additional paid leave, after one of the most difficult discussions within the negotiations, as those working in specific conditions will use 8 days, while the additional leave for work after regular working hours will be 6 days in 2026, and 5 days in 2027.

Guaranteed minimum basic salary – it has been agreed to be determined by the formula minimum salary for the country × 1.3, with thresholds set for each year: EUR 620.20 for 2026, EUR 682 for 2027, and EUR 723 for 2028. Upon reaching these values, the 1.3 coefficient will not apply.

Minimum guaranteed increase of basic salaries by 5%, effective from April 1, 2026.

Increased night shift pay – an amount of EUR 1 for each night hour worked has been agreed, compared to an initial proposal by the employer of EUR 0.93.

Despite the employer's insistence on limiting retirement benefits, the FTTU managed to negotiate amounts that remain significantly above the legal minimum: 8 gross salaries for employees with a length of service from 10 (ten) to 20 (twenty) years – 11 gross salaries for 2026, and 10 gross salaries for 2027 for employees with a length of service of 20 (twenty) or more years with the employer.

A number of trade union rights have also been preserved, including the participation of trade union organizations in negotiating bonus systems and other issues related to labor remuneration and working conditions.

The new Collective Labor Agreement is for two years, and the trade union organization retains its right to lead new negotiations for the increase of basic salaries in 2027 as well.

In conclusion, Eng. Aleksandar Shopov stressed that the true assessment of an employer is not determined solely by modern infrastructure or high service quality.

„The image of a 5-star airport is important for passengers. However, for current and future employees, the strongest recommendation is decent pay, good working conditions, and the social benefits agreed in the Collective Labor Agreement.“

The Federation of Transport Trade Unions thanks all its members for their trust, active stance, and support throughout the negotiation process.

The achieved agreement is the result of consistent trade union work, the active participation of workers, and the belief that a good social dialogue is the only path to sustainable solutions.