History

This Order was instituted by the Regents of Bulgaria, and it was conferred upon Bulgarian and foreign civilians in recognition of extraordinary achievements or organizational excellence with a public or private economical field of work. It was also awarded to artists and scientists for long service.

The Order was originally called the People’s Order of Labour, and it was awarded in two grades, the Gold Class and the Silver Class. In 1950, the Bronze Class was added to the Order.

This Order was discontinued on April 5, 1991.

When the Order was awarded to women it was worn on a bow ribbon.

The Type I awards were awarded from 1945-1974, have a reverse inscription that translates to "People's Order of Labour," were designed by Dechko Uzunov and Lyuben Dimitrov, and they were issued twice.

The awards issued first are worn on a triangular cloth ribbon and feature a surmounting wheat-ear wreath suspension.

The awards issued second are worn on a pentagon-shaped metal ribbon holder and do not feature a surmounting wheat-ear wreath suspension.