According to the preliminary data of the National Statistical Institute, the number of employed and work-related employees at the end of September 2018 decreased by 36.9 thousand, or by 1.6% compared to the end of June 2018, reaching 2.32 million.
 
Compared to the end of the second quarter of 2018, the largest decrease in the number of employed persons was observed in the economic activities "Hotels and restaurants" - by 14.8%, "Culture, sports and entertainment" - by 5.9%, and in "Mining and quarrying" by 2.3%. The largest increase in the number of employed persons under labor and service contracts was recorded in the activity "Construction" - by 1.9% and "Education" - by 1.6%.
 
The average gross monthly salary for July 2018 is BGN 1120, for August – BGN 1095, and for September – BGN 1135. In the third quarter of 2018 the average monthly salary was BGN 1117 and decreased by 0.7% compared to the second quarter of 2018. The economic activities in which the largest decrease was recorded are "Financial and insurance activities" - by 5.6%, and "Administrative and auxiliary activities" and "Education" - by 2.5%.
 
In the structure of the employed by economic activity, the relative share of the employees in labor and official relations is in the "Manufacturing" and "Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles" - respectively 21.9 and 16.9%.
 
At the end of September 2018, as compared to the end of September 2017, the number of employees under labor and service contracts increased by 6.9 thousand or by 0.3%. The largest increase in the number of employees was observed in the economic activities "Construction" - by 7.0 thousand, "Creation and dissemination of information and creative products"; "Telecommunications" by 4.2 thousand and "Human health and social work "by 2.6 thousand, while the largest decrease in "Manufacturing" by 2.5 thousand. In percentage terms, the increase is most significant in the economic activities of "Construction" and "Creation and dissemination of information and creative products; 5.7 and 5.0% respectively, while the biggest decrease was recorded in "Culture, Sports and Entertainment" by 4.4%.
 
In the third quarter of 2018, the average monthly wage increased by 7.7% compared to the third quarter of 2017, with the largest increase in economic activities "Creation and dissemination of information and creative products; telecommunication" - by 13.4%, “Hotels and restaurants" - by 12.0%, and "Education" - by 10.2%.
 
The economic activities with the highest average monthly remuneration of the employees under the labor contract in the third quarter of 2018 are: "Creation and dissemination of information and creative products; distant communications" – BGN 2 661, "Financial and insurance activities" – BGN 1 815, "Production and distribution of electricity, gas, steam and hot water supply" – BGN 1 804. The lowest paid were the employees in the economic activities were "Hotels and restaurants" - BGN 707, "Other activities" - BGN 788 and "Administrative and auxiliary activities" - BGN 881.
 
Compared to the same period of the previous year, the average monthly salary in the third quarter of 2018 in the public sector increased by 9.2% and in the private sector by 7.3%.
 
The average gross monthly salary for April 2018 is BGN 1,145, for May - BGN 1,101 and for June - BGN 1,119. In the second quarter of 2018 the average monthly salary was BGN 1,125 and rose by 4.5% compared to the first quarter of 2018. The most significant economic activities were “Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries” - by 9.8%, "Construction" by 8.2% and "Financial and insurance activities" by 6.7%.