Today, Plamen Dimitrov - President of CITUB, the Chairman of FTTU, Eng. Aleksandar Shopov, and Petar Bunev - Chairman of the RTUY, held a first meeting with Grozdan Karadzhov - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications. The meeting was also attended by Krasimira Stoyanova - former caretaker Minister of Transport.

The Chairman of FTTU and the President of CITUB raised with the Minister some of the most important issues related to water, air, and public transport.

What is happening with the master plan of the Port of Varna?

• The master plan is expected to be released by the MoEW, and the Minister promised to sign it without delay!

Has the Business Plan of "Port of Varna" for 2025 been submitted to the MoTC? It includes a shamefully low 5% increase in salaries.

FTTU stated that the expectations for salaries in the port sector are for at least a 15% increase.

Minister Karadzhov stated that the plan will be reviewed and salaries will be optimized according to feasibility.

What are the intentions of the MoTC regarding the concessioning of the state port terminals?

• At present, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development have been commissioned to analyze the development of the Ports of Varna East and West. Only after these are reviewed will decisions be made on how the port complexes will be developed.

What actions will the MoTC take for drivers of forklift trucks, reach stackers, etc., operators of heavy machinery and cranes, who were left out of the scope of the ordinance on categorized labor?

- FTTU insists on assistance from the MoTC to amend and supplement the Ordinance on the Categorization of Labor and include these workers in its scope.

- We received assurance from the Minister that if the MoLSP (as the leading Ministry) and the MoF agree, the MoTC will support the proposal.

Issues in "SOF Connect" AD were also discussed, such as the lack of sufficient staff to handle the flow of passengers, as well as people with special needs, low levels of pay for ground staff, etc.

• We received assurance that these issues will be raised at an upcoming meeting with the management of SOF Connect.

The shortage of staff in the Executive Agency "Automobile Administration" is also a serious problem. As well as the low salaries in the agency.

Minister Karadzhov will look at what the standards in the European Union are and what the workload is. Relevant reports summarizing the results are also expected.

The Chairman of FTTU, Eng. Aleksandar Shopov, left Minister Karadzhov with a folder containing more questions, which the Minister promised to examine in detail.

The folder is expected to be sent to the relevant experts in the fields, and the corresponding reports will be prepared, submitted, and sent to the Federation.