TRADE UNION IN BULGARIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00046R000200220010-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 3, 2013
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: September 30, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/06/04 :CIA-RDP82-000468000200220010-4
SECRET
SECURITY INFORMATION
REPORT Nq
COUNTRY Bulgaria
SUB7ECT Trade Uzaioza in Bulgaria
50X1
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE
ACQUIRED BY SOURCE
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
1. There was only oxae trade unioa~ in Bulgaria which embraced. all gain-
fu11y-employed persons, It was called the 4~eneral Workers Prafes-
siona.l union (Obsht Rabotnichel~ki Profesionalen Saius ~ ORPS) and was
subdivided ia~to branches far the various types of work. The supremE?.
organ of the Qeneral Trade Union was the~Trade Union Congress; the
executive b?dy was the Central Trade Union Council.
2. Every business enterprise? office, or factory had a trade union
organization comprising the entire personnel. In enterprises employ-
ing fewer than 15 perl~ons, the employees were organized into trade
un3.o~i groups, Each trade union organization or group was di'reeted by
a committee coz>~posed cif a chairman and his deputies, i.e., a deputy
for cultural work and inetrruction, a deputy responsible for the pro-
teGtiOn of labor, and so forth,
The Trade Union was not officially a political organization, but it
was; common knowledge that the Trade Un3.on blindly followed the pgli-
ci~s of the B~lgariaa~ CP mad every member had to show complete
.agreement with such policies.,
DATE DISTR. ~O ~. 6~3
NO.OF PAGES
NO.OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/06/04 :CIA-RDP82-000468000200220010-4
 Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/06/04 :CIA-RDP82-000468000200220010-4
Declassified in Part -Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/06/04 :CIA-RDP82-000468000200220010-4
 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/06/04 :CIA-RDP82-000468000200220010-4
50X1
SE~~?ET
_~..
~. All gainfully-employed perserns in Bulg$ria autaa.tically, became a~ea~a-
bers of tr,~ 4R~'S 9 I did ar~Qt" ka~aw a single ea~p~.nyed. ~er>~on who did
not belong, althougYi it .was a:~c~t expressly stated that me~abership ia1
the Trade Un2oar~~ vas obligatory.
~. The teaks pf tl~e Trade Union were ostensibly to protect the workers'
..
interests., -take ca>"e of the workers' retire~ierat, and settle all
problems arising in employer _ employee rel~.tion~. Ia4z reality, 'the
Trade Union d.id not seem; greatly eoneeraaed v~ith the workers' real
interests. A ease in point is the new laboxy cede which was adopted.
i.n 1951 or 1952.. This code was drawn, up r~ith the full approval Qf
the Trade Union and ar-ay even have been drawn up by the Union itself .
Egeryohe realized that the new code deprived the~i of the rights which
they, had en~fca~red even during the war years. For eacaa~ple, before the
new labor cede went l.nta~ effect, employees of the State worked a
se*aera and one-half hour d~.y~ f'3.ve days a weeks aa~d one-half day can
Saturdays. The new latiar crude ~.ncreased tkxe work week to six full
eight-hour days,
7. The new code also chaa>