Despite employers’ requests, the quota for employing foreign workers has not been increased.
Currently, the Employment Service of Republika Srpska (RS) is not issuing permits for foreign workers because the previously set quota has already been filled, and the necessary approval from the competent ministry for its increase has not been granted.
It is no secret that workers from other countries are needed by employers in RS. For instance, in July, at the request of the RS Employers’ Association Union, the Board of Directors of the Employment Service adopted a decision to amend the ruling on determining the quotas for work permits for employing foreign nationals and stateless persons in RS.
“The ruling established a work permit quota for 2024, allowing for the employment of 2.000 foreign nationals and stateless persons. This quota includes 500 extensions of previously issued permits and 1.500 for new employment. It is valid until December 31st, 2024. Additionally, the quota for work permits in 2025 was set at the same session, allowing for 2.000 work permits for foreign nationals, valid until July 2025. Of this total, 500 permits are allocated for extensions, and 1.500 for new employment,” the Employment Service stated.
They added that these decisions, made in accordance with legal procedures, were submitted to the RS Government for approval. However, approval has not been granted, leaving everything on hold.
As a result, the current quota remains at 1.400 work permits, of which 1.000 are for new hires and 400 for extensions.
Zoran Skrebic, president of the RS Employers’ Association, emphasized in an interview that RS, and Bosnia and Herzegovina(BiH) as a whole, lack sufficient work permits. This is particularly concerning, he noted, considering that permits are also issued for diplomatic missions.
“In these circumstances, where emigration is permitted but the import of labor is not, we are likely to face serious problems. We are already experiencing them, and they will only deepen in the future. What we hope for is an increase in the number of work permits, approval from the ministry, higher quotas, and simpler procedures for bringing in labor,” Skrebic explained.
He stressed that there is already a significant labor shortage in RS, particularly in smaller communities.
“When workers leave, there is almost no way to fill their positions, or it becomes extremely difficult. Sometimes it takes three to six months to fill a vacancy. However, the bigger problem lies in estimates suggesting that BiH will lack approximately 100.000 workers in the coming years. In these conditions, where workers are leaving for much more developed economies, it will be impossible to bring them back. This will become an existential issue for the economy,” Skrebic stated.
He also noted that while it is difficult to determine the exact number of foreign workers needed, the current quotas are undoubtedly insufficient, as every sector is in need of workers.
“Initially, quotas of 5.000 to 10.000 work permits should be established. These may not be fully utilized in the first few years, but the need for increases will soon arise,” he added, pointing out that the figures in neighboring countries are significantly higher.
The Employment Service further clarified the procedure for setting quotas, stating that the annual quota for work permits in RS is determined by the Employment Service of RS with the approval of the RS Government.
“The work permit quota is then submitted to the BiH Agency for Labor and Employment, which forwards it to the Council of Ministers for a final decision on the national work permit quota,” they explained, Biznis Info writes.
Photo: EU in BiH
E.Dz.
