Two pupils from the 108th School "Nikola Belovezhdov" spent a day as minister and deputy minister of labour and social policy, the ministry said. They took part in the "Manager for a Day" initiative.
The girl who acted as minister and the boy who acted as deputy minister learned how the ministry works. They looked at labour, jobs and social security, and at support for children, parents, older people and people with disabilities.
Minister Natalia Efremova showed them how the ministry's departments work and what the Employment Agency, the Social Assistance Agency and the General Labour Inspectorate do. She urged young people who are about to start work to know their labour and social security rights.
Efremova said young people will change jobs many times and must keep learning and building their skills. "The ability to learn throughout life is among the most valuable qualities for anyone," she said.
Deputy minister Nadya Klisurska and ministry experts explained the key points of the social economy, social innovation and the social responsibility of business. Deputy minister Lilia Stoyanovich described the difficulties of managing EU money for children, families, jobs and better skills for workers.
The two pupils showed the ministry's leaders the products they developed as managers of student practice firms.
At the end of the day, Efremova and the pupils visited the Centre for Little People. With staff from the social service, they discussed how to improve quality of life and create an accessible environment for people with disabilities in Bulgaria. The talks were timed for the coming 25 October, World Dwarfism Awareness Day.
Junior Achievement Bulgaria (JA Bulgaria) organises the initiative, now in its 24th year. Since 2002 it has brought thousands of school and university students together with employers and professionals from different sectors. This year's motto is "From digital skills to leadership decisions".