Other persistent shortcomings in the field of labor that have plagued the economy and have been the target of frequent criticism and administrative action by the leadership are inefficient organization of labor and poor labor discipline. Inefficient labor organization has been mainly an outgrowth of inferior management skills. Poor labor discipline has been a consequence of inadequate work incentives. In 1972 the minister of labor and social welfare estimated that more than 20 percent of the working time was lost through idling and other violations of labor discipline.
Adequate information on the structure of wages was not available in mid-1973. The main faults of the wage system that prevailed in early 1973 after repeated revisions, however, were outlined by the BKP leader, Zhivkov, and these faults were also discussed by labor ministry officials from the point of view of their effect on labor productivity. The basic wage constitutes the main incentive for work; bonuses, premiums, and honors play a minor role. Because of the large investment needs for industrial development and the corollary need to restrict consumption, wages have been kept low, and the rise in wages has been slower than the growth of productivity.
Basic wage pay has been based on the place of employment and not on the work performed. Wage scales for identical work have differed substantially between branches of the economy and industry. In industry, wage scales have been lower in branches manufacturing consumer goods than in branches producing capital goods; they have been lowest in textile mills. Wages have been determined by job classifications within economic and industrial branches, the workers' level of education, and length of service. Normal increases in pay for workers remaining in the same positions have therefore been infrequent.
Slow promotion and the disparity in wage scales contributed to excessive labor turnover because, under the prevailing conditions of scarcity, trained workers were able to improve their incomes through a change of jobs. It also led to irregularities in job reclassification by employers seeking to retain their workers through increases in pay. Wages have been raised from time to time by the government through general upward revisions of pay scales. This method, however, has no incentive value because it is not directly linked to an improvement in the workers' performance.
With a view to enhancing the stimulative effect of wages on productivity, Zhivkov proposed a basic reform of the wage system that would be carried out gradually in the 1973-80 period. In presenting his proposal to the BKP Central Committee plenum, Zhivkov dwelt on some of the major principles to be embodied in the new wage system. The minimum wage must be higher, and the rise in wages must be more rapid than before. Increases in basic wages must be closely linked to individual performance and to overall labor productivity in general, pay would be based on performance rather than on formal qualification or length of service. To this end the sectoral approach to wage determination is to be abandoned in favor of a functional approach that would establish a uniform economy-wide wage scale for jobs in relation to their complexity and hardship and to the specific conditions of work. Rigid pay scales are to be replaced by flexible schedules providing a range of pay for each job depending upon the ability and performance of the worker.
The reform would also gradually eliminate the egalitarian aspect of the current wage system by providing appropriate differentials for workers with higher qualifications. Under the current system, for example, the salary of economists has been below that of engineers, and the salary of engineers has been equivalent to the wages of skilled workers. This problem has been repeatedly considered in the past, but its solution was delayed for lack of funds.
Zhivkov also cited shortcomings of the prevailing piecework system and suggested some long-range remedies for the ills. About 60 percent of all workers have been employed on the piecework system. Production norms under the system have been low because of technological advances and the infrequency of adjustment of norms. Under these conditions workers have been able to exceed the basic norms to such an extent that payment for work above the norm has become a large, and in some cases the predominant, portion of the workers' earnings. Striving to increase their wages, workers under the piecework system have often resorted to shortcuts that have lowered the quality of output.
Zhivkov's proposal for improvement included the introduction of more realistic and more flexible quantitative and qualitative production norms and a gradual transition to hourly rates of pay with bonus payments for superior work whenever the quantity and quality of output is not directly dependent on individual workers. Under these conditions bonus payments would be linked to the performance of the entire working personnel, and the importance of the bonus in wage payments would be enhanced.
The wage reform has been discussed in the context of a broad program, announced by the BKP Central Committee plenum in December 1972, for a general rise in incomes and an improvement in the population's level of living. In the process the difference between urban and lagging rural incomes is to be eliminated. Implementation of the program has been made contingent upon the attainment of greater productivity and output through workers' efforts to surpass production and efficiency targets set by the government. These more difficult targets must be embodied in what have been officially labeled workers' counterplans. The BKP and the government have launched a new form of so-called socialist competition among workers and economic units, the aim of which is to exceed in performance the requirements of the counterplans.
Implementation of the standard of living program began with the introduction of wage increases, effective March 1, 1973, for workers employed under difficult or hazardous conditions, schoolteachers and university faculties, physicians and medical personnel, and employees of artistic and cultural institutions. Effective June 1 the minimum wage for all types of work was raised from 65 to 80 leva per month, and a level of 88 leva per month was decreed for all workers earning between 80 and 87 leva. The resultant distortion of the wage structure is to be eliminated over a period of several years.