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Balkan labor market and sick leave abuse

Updated 3 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-08-31 08:28 UTC → 2026-09-04 09:19 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Labor markets in the Balkan region continue to face challenges regarding workforce availability and systemic sick leave abuse. In the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, employers struggle with widespread sick leave abuse. Safudin Čengić, President of the Economic-Social Council, previously highlighted cases where 800 out of 1,000 employees in a single company utilized sick leave within a year. While new regulations for stricter verification await administrative approval, significant discrepancies in parental leave policies have emerged between entities. In Republika Srpska, parents can take up to 30 days of sick leave for children under 15, or 14 days for older children. Conversely, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina allows up to four months of sick leave per calendar year for children under 15, with potential extensions for severe congenital or degenerative diseases. Broader systemic issues persist in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where business leaders argue that current employment policies fail to distinguish between active job seekers and those on unemployment registries for other reasons. ~~Despite reform promises from~~ Minister of Labor and Social Policy Adnan ~~Delić, unemployment~~ Delić has recently addressed these critical failures, noting that employment records ~~have only decreased by 28,000 over three years, a trend complicated by migration~~ remain inaccurate. He emphasized that the adoption of the Law on Employment Mediation and ~~retirement. Recent shifts~~ Social Security for Unemployed Persons is a necessary prerequisite for further legislative support. Currently, approximately 246,000 people are listed as unemployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina show that official statistical methodologies now formally recognize workers holding multiple jobs, including those with primary roles supplemented by seasonal, freelance, or family-based work, or those managing three or more simultaneous engagements. the Federation, even as employers report difficulties finding workers. In Serbia, labor shortages in construction, manufacturing, and services persist. Data from the first half of 2025 shows high demand for masons, mechanics, and drivers, leading to significant wage increases and a trend of retirees returning to the workforce to meet demand. In Croatia, the government has attempted to address shortages by opening the market to retirees.

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