The outsourced services industry is among the best employers in Bulgaria
The outsourcing industry is strengthening its position as a preferred employer, as evidenced by the growing number of people working in the sector, as well as the rising employees’ costs and taxes, paid by companies. The business and technology sector makes up 3.5% of the labor market in Bulgaria, the data from the latest annual AIBEST report showed. Even in the challenging 2020, the industry continued to hire new people, and by August 2020 the number of employees in the sector reached 81 000 people (3 000 employees more than in the successful 2019). Meanwhile, the sector generates 9.3% of all salary expenditures in our economy. “We will continue to be an attractive force for talent and a preferred employer, because of the development opportunities we provide to young people. Accelerated digitalization and the growing demand for highly qualified personnel are the reason for the convergence of the level of payment between the two subsectors - IT outsourcing and business processes outsourcing. In this competitive environment, companies in our industry regularly conduct surveys on the level of satisfaction of their employees. And as a result of the good HR practices, our sector is characterized by extremely high positive feedback from 77% of employees", said Ilia Krastev, Chairman of AIBEST. The data from a survey on HR policies of the members of the Association, prepared by the international consulting company Mercer, was presented during the recently held AIBEST Annual Summit in Stara Zagora. The study shows that despite the pandemic 2020, companies have not stopped their practices for additional financial incentives and benefits. The growth rate of the work salary in the sector on a yearly basis is 5% and is commensurate with the other economic sectors. 95% of the companies give an annual bonus to their employees based on the achieved results. The bonus amounts to one gross salary on average. Remote work is an HR practice that has existed in the sector before the Covid-19 pandemic, but now the number of companies that implement a hybrid work model is significantly rising. As of 2019, about a quarter of the companies have provided such an opportunity, and currently 66% plan to continue working in this way. Nearly half of the respondents (48%) plan to give the option to work from anywhere, with 86% of companies providing equipment or covering the costs. The data from the HR survey also shows that 100% of the AIBEST members provide supplementary health insurance to their employees, as well as a Referral bonus for new comers. Nearly 76% of the companies give free sports cards or partially cover the cost of sports activities. 7 out of 10 companies provide food vouchers, 60% of them add a life insurance and almost as much (57%) - psychological help. The other common feature of the outsourced services industry is the investment in social responsibility campaigns. Areas in which companies organize their initiatives are related to health prevention and safety, ethical standards, promotion of separate waste collection, recycling and educational initiatives for the development of young people.