Bulgarian Empire

Chapter 42: Bulgarian Labor Protection Act

Not long ago, a Bulgarian capitalist - Bilkiev - went directly to Romania to "relocate the factory", but he was detained for making too much noise, unluckily.

The son of Bulgarian capitalist Evlogi Georgiev (one of the founders of Sofia University), Bilkiev is bright and clever plus daring.

In his poaching spree, Bilkiev didn't put up a hiring sign, as others had done. He felt that would have been too inefficient.

When he entered Alexandria, Romania, Bilkiev set his sights on the Weber paper mill, bribed his way into the ground, and found two local men who worked at the mill, the Nikolas brothers.

"Brother, is it true what Mr. Bilkiev said?" asked young Nikolsted with concern.

"How should I know, but these eight hundred Lei can't be fake!" said a casual remark from old Nikolsted.

"Well! Anyway, now our family is like this. Without money to pay the debt, we will also be killed by them all!" said young Nikolsted helplessly.

"No, at worst, they will turn us into their slaves. If they kill us, who will return their money later!" said old Nikolsted reassuringly.

Since their father, the elder Nikolsted, fell ill three years ago, the family has had a tough time. They were forced to borrow from loan sharks, and the elder Nikolsted still didn't make it through.

Then the Nikolsted family began the debt repayment journey, from the initial thirty Lei to the current five hundred Lei, in which the brothers paid off one hundred Lei.

"Forget it, as long as Mr. Bilkiev is willing to pay, we'll do it. Anyway, that vampire Dracula is no good!" said young Nikolsted fiercely.

"That's right, my brother. That vampire Dracula hates to deduct every Lei from us. Going to Bulgaria to make a living might be a good way out." said old Nikolsted expectantly.

The unified thinking of the Nikolsted brothers began to help Bilkiev persuade around, and everyone did not believe much. As seen in the past friendship, the crowd still met with Bilkiev.

Bilkiev played his tricky tongue and soon fooled a group of workers, then issued a month's salary in advance as a deposit.

Dracula, as a proper capitalist, is naturally also a greedy vampire. Obviously, he just had the workers gutted by Bilkiev and then ran away with the crowd secretly.

If only that would be enough, as long as you run fast when found that he has run back to Bulgaria, who will take him can do nothing.

Although there was no way that Bilkiev would stop after he had tasted the sweetness of the business. He took on the nature of a capitalist and went straight to work as labor brokers, luring workers from all over Romania and taking his own profit.

As it turns out, the capitalists of the 19th century were not to be messed around at all. Bill, who had only done a few jobs, was targeted and unluckily exposed in the Caracal region and held by the local capitalists.

Bilkiev managed to stay alive with his sharp tongue, and now the other side is demanding ransom from Evlogi Georgiev.

Fearing for Bill's safety, Evlogi Georgiev approached Minister of Foreign Affairs Metev. There was no choice, who told Metev to marry Evlogi Georgiev's daughter and had to step in to rescue this...

The ransom of one million Lei, which Evlogi Georgiev apparently did not intend to pay, was not ready for a short time even if he wanted to pay!

Metev had a headache, used personal relations, and found the other side, and the two sides negotiated very smoothly. They can guarantee the safety of Bilkiev. There is no need to worry about the treatment as long as the ransom is given. Anyway, the money cannot be less than a big one.

In the end, Metev managed to find a way to get Bilkiev out, with a bunch of favors owed and a large sum of money lost.

It was, sort of, the end of the poaching. Since then, the capitalists of all countries have raised their guard, and Bulgaria can no longer poach with reckless ease.

Ferdinand's easy days were over, too. The massive influx of people to Bulgaria brought benefits and a whole lot of trouble.

The crime rate rose sharply, the conflict between locals and foreigners intensified, capitalists started to be wicked again, recklessly deducting wages, and labor disputes emerged. Some capitalists even used a lot of foreign labor and reduced the number of national workers to save money.

Various government ministries have been exhausted by one after another To mediate the dispute. It is also thanks to Ferdinand's industry, which dominates in Bulgaria, has been careful to keep to its ways so that there is no major chaos.

Looking at the problems reported around the country, Ferdinand knew that it was time to introduce labor protection laws. Otherwise, if they dragged on, it possible that a working-class revolution would break out one day.

On September 18, 1890, the first Bulgarian law was passed, which dealt with solving labor disputes - the Bulgarian Labor Protection Act.

This law, which Ferdinand referred to as the latest labor law, such as the British Factory Act. To a certain extent, it favored the working class, and the penalty for labor disputes was severe and stunning.

Future generations believe that this was the first real labor protection law. The articles clearly stipulate that the working hours of heavy labor shall not exceed ten working hours. They must be paid overtime wages in excess and one day of paid vacation each week for recovery.

A minimum monthly wage has also been set, which must not be less than 7.5 Leva (equal to about 3). When split into an hourly wage, this figure is similar to the current average wage in Bulgaria.

In the case of labor disputes, if a capitalist fails to pay wages in bad faith and withholds them recklessly, the maximum penalty is direct confiscation of the factory, which comes with a hefty fine.

By the same token, if a worker is a vicious troublemaker, who plants false evidence for extortion, he or she will face life imprisonment if found guilty.

All offenses will be severely punished. However, the law does not protect all people, and many articles are aimed only at Bulgarian citizens.

For example, the lack of freedom to reduce salary is only for Bulgarian citizens. There is also the minimum wage level, which is a privilege for the citizens of the country.

If a foreign worker can speak Bulgarian, the minimum wage protection is only eighty percent for national citizens. If not, then they have only fifty percent of the minimum wage protection.

It includes the most rest days, working hours, and different treatment for citizens of the country and outsiders. And for each factory, the number of native citizens must not be less than sixty percent.

It's almost as if the capitalists are not clearly saying that they are recklessly oppressing foreigners and showing mercy to their people!

When the Bulgarian Labor Protection Act was introduced, there was a public sensation. Naturally, it was praised in the media as a major step forward in Bulgaria's democratic progress.

There was also a great deal of satire by some scholars who claimed to have disrupted the free market of capitalism, and no one ever came back to it except for a few capitalists who supported it.

There are also a small number of Virginists1) who believe that the government has not done enough to treat all people equally. Alas, the outcry is too weak even to bother publishing in the newspapers.

Translator:

1) Similar to baizuo, or Blessed Mother of Bitch.