State unions demand urgent session of the House of Peoples of the BiH PA and adoption of amendments to the Law on Salaries and Allowances

(Patria) - At the beginning of 2026, employees in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina are facing the same, unresolved problems that repeat year after year.

The unions of the Indirect Taxation Authority, the Union of Police Organizations in BiH, and the Independent Union of Civil Servants and Employees in BiH institutions sent a request on January 12 to the leadership of the House of Peoples of the BiH PA for an urgent session to consider the Law on Amendments to the Law on Salaries and Allowances in BiH institutions.

As stated in their letter, any further delay puts BiH institutions at a disadvantage, thereby placing representative unions in a position to apply all legally permitted means to protect their rights, including protests, work stoppages, and even strikes.

The House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH adopted the aforementioned draft law in September 2025, under an urgent procedure and almost unanimously, which clearly stipulates that the base for calculating salaries cannot be lower than the base determined by the collective agreement, and that it applies from January 1 of the current year. Despite this, the House of Peoples has not yet considered this law.

In their statements, the unions remind that 2026 is also an election year, and considering that institutional mechanisms clearly do not provide adequate protection, they will be forced to ask their membership to seriously consider who to give their vote to.

"More than 22,500 employees with the right to vote, along with their family members, represent a force that no one should ignore," the unions state.

The Council of Ministers of BiH determined the base for calculating salaries for employees in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina for 2026 in the amount of 690.86 KM. However, due to the non-adoption of the budget, it is foreseen that the base will apply only from the month following the adoption of the budget.