EMPLOYMENT OF WOMEN IN THE FORESTRY SECTOR IN THE EU MEMBER STATES OF THE DANUBE REGION

Main goal of the study is to analyze the participation of women in the forestry sector in Bulgaria and in the other EU Member States in the Danube region. The object of a more in-depth analysis are the female employees in the following forest-based industries: “Forestry and logging”; “Manufacture of wood and of products of wood and cork, except furniture; manufacture of articles of straw and plaiting materials”; "Manufacture of paper and paper products"; "Manufacture of furniture". The main author's hypothesis is that the participation of women in the forestry sector in the Danube region is low. The currently used measures and initiatives to motivate their participation are not effective enough. Those initiatives are mainly focused on training, which, however, do not reflect the real reasons for the lack of interest of women in the sector. The adopted research methods are based on logical, deductive and comparative methods, as well as on the methods of analysis and synthesis. The results of the study support the literature by providing more data on the employment of women in the forestry sector, as well as some good practices.