The CITUB trade union has started warning protests to demand pay rises of at least 10% in the public sector in 2027, union vice president Todor Kapitanov said. The first rally was in Varna. Shumen is next tomorrow, and Ruse a day later.

Staff of the Pencho Slaveykov Regional Library protested in front of the building for 10 minutes. Placards read: "Inflation is rising, pay is not", "Our work is worth more", "We want fair pay" and "Decent pay for decent work".

The money must come from the state budget. CITUB has calculated that a real rise of 10% would cost the 2027 budget just over €732m.

"The increase we are asking for will not improve families' lives. It will only try to make up for inflation," Kapitanov said.

A young library employee starts on about €700 a month after tax. That does not cover housing, heating, food and clothing, Kapitanov said, and with food and fuel prices rising, it buys even less.

The plan for this year's budget was to keep incomes frozen. But after union action they were raised by 5%, though not for all workers.

Kapitanov said he is worried about next year's budget because nobody is saying how incomes will grow. He said no functional review has been done to show where tasks overlap and where staff are lacking. The unions want any mergers of bodies that affect jobs and pay to be discussed with employees beforehand.

"We want to see how restructuring the administrations will improve services, and not only lead to a 10% cut in staff costs," Kapitanov said.

Workers in agriculture, education and health care will also join the protests in Shumen and Ruse, along with those in culture and communications.