Bosnia and Herzegovina - Maternity protection - 2011

July 2012

Labour Code of the District of Brcko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, of 2 November 2000 (Text No. 175), as amended to the Act of 31 October 2005

Law on Labour of the Republic of Srpska, Official Gazette of Republika Srpska, 38/00

Labour Code of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Text No. 271), dated 27 October 1999. Sluzbene Novine, 1999-10-28, No. 43, pp. 1771-178, as amended up to Act of 18 June 2003 (Text No. 297). Sluzbene Novine, 2003-06-30, No. 29, pp. 1332-1333 (English version available up to Act of 15 August 2000 to amend and supplement the Labour Code (Text No. 265))

Act on gender equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Text No. 161), dated 21 May 2003. Sluzbeni Glasnik, 2003-06-16, No. 16, pp. 356-360

CEACR: Individual Direct Request concerning Maternity Protection Convention (Revised), 1952 (No. 103) Bosnia and Herzegovina (ratification: 1993) Submitted: 2009

Women employees.

In the case of death of the mother, in case the mother abandons the baby or if for a justified reason she is prevented from using this right, the father of the child, or the adoptive parent, may use the right to maternity leave.

Federation of Bornia and Herzegovina: A woman may not take shorter maternity leave than 42 days following the birth of the child.

Republic of Srpska: A woman may not start work before 60 days have expired after childbirth.

District of Brcko: 7 days before the presumed date of confinement and 42 days after childbirth.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina/Republic of Srpska: 365 days (one year). A woman may start maternity leave 28 days prior to the expected date of birth of the child.

District of Brcko: 12 consecutive months. The leave may start 28 days before the presumed date of confinement.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina/Republic of Srpska: 18 months in the case of the birth of twins, the third or each subsequent child.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: One of the parents may take parental leave, if this is stipulated in the collective agreement or the rulebook. During absence from work for this time, the rights and obligations deriving from employment shall be at rest.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: The right to parental leave is to be stipulated in a collective agreement or the rulebook (see: scope).

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Until the child’s third birthday.

All regions: An employee whose wife gives birth to a child.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Up to seven working days in one calendar year.

Republic of Srpska/ District of Brsko: Up to three working days within one calendar year.

All regions: In the case of death of the mother, in case the mother abandons the baby, or if for justified reason she is prevented from using the right to maternity leave, the adoptive parent may use the right to maternity leave.

All regions: 365 days (12 months)

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina/District of Brcko: After expiry of maternity leave, a women with a baby of up to one year of age shall be entitled to work half-time, for twins, third or each following child up to the child’s second birthday.
This right may also be used by the employed father of the baby, if the women works fulltime in that period.

Republic of Srpska: Upon expiry of maternit yleave, one working parent of a child up to two years of age shall be entitled to work half time if the child, as deteremined by a competent doctor, needs a special care.

All regions: Employees taking maternity leave.

All regions: 365 days (12 months)

Federation BiH
- 50-80% of the reference wage, depending upon the various cantonal regulations of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Republik of Srpska
- 100% of the salary the employee was earning during the last six months before the starting date of the maternity leave.

District of Brcko:
- 100%

n.a.

All regions: Employees taking leave for confinement of their spouses.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Up to seven working days in one calendar year.

District of Brcko/Republic of Srpska: Up to three working days in one calendar year.

All regions: Paid (not specified)

n.a.

All regions: In the case of death of the mother, in case the mother abandons the baby, or if for justified reason she is prevented from using the right to maternity leave, the adoptive parent may use the right to maternity leave.

All regions: 365 days (one year)

Federation BiH
- 50-80% of the reference wage, depending upon the various cantonal regulations of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Republik of Srpska
- 100% of the salary the employee was earning during the last six months before the starting date of the maternity leave.

District of Brcko:
- 100%

n.a.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: A woman working full working hours after having used her maternity leave shall be entitled to be absent from work twice daily for a duration of one hour each time for the purpose of nursing the child, until the child reaches one year of age.

Republic of Srpska: If a woman starts work before the expiry of the whole maternity leave period (12 or 18 months, respectively), she shall be entitled to additional 60 minutes of breaks during working hours in order to breastfeed the child.

District of Brcko: A woman who after maternity leave works her normal hours of work shall be entitled to be absent from work for one hour twice a day to breastfeed the child, counted as normal hours of work, until the child reaches one year of age.

Full pay.

Republic of Srpska: Pregnant women, starting from the sixth month of pregnancy and mothers of a child under one year of age shall not work at night.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: A pregnant woman, mother or a adoptive parent with a child of up to three years of age, or a self-sustaining parent or adoptive parent with a child of up to six years of age, may work overtime if s/he provides a written statement of voluntary consent to such work.

Republic of Srpska: No overtime work shall be ordered for pregnant women, a mother of a child of up to three years of age and single parents or single adoptive parenty of a child under six years of age. Exceptionally, these employees may work overtime if he/she provides a written statement of his/her voluntary consent to do it.

District of Brsko: A pregnant women, a mother or an adoptive parent with a child of up to one year of age, or a single lparent or single adoptive parent with a child of up to two years of age may owrk overtime if he/she agrees in writing of his/her own free will to such hours of work.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: General provision covering all workers: An employer has a duty to equip the employee for work in the manner securing protection of life and health of the employee and preventing accident occurrence. An employer also has a duty to secure the necessary safety conditions to secure protection of life and health of the employee, in accordance with the law. An employee is entitled to refuse to work if her/his life or health is immediately threatened due to the fact that no prescribed safety measures have been enforced and s/he is obliged to report this immediately to the labor inspection of the canton.

District of Brsko: Employers shall ensure that, so far as is reaonably practicable and in keeping with technical regulations, the workplaces, machinery, equipment and processes under their control are safe and without risk to health, and that the chemical, physical and biological substances and agents under their control are without risk to health when appropriate masures of protection are taken.

During pregnancy or breastfeeding of child, a woman may be assigned to other jobs if this is in the interest of her health condition as established by the certified medical doctor. The temporary assignment may not result in reduction of the woman’s salary. The employer may dislocate the woman into another place of work only with her written consent.

Republic of Srpska: On the basis of the findings and recommndations of the competent doctor, a pregnant of breasfeeding women may be temporarily placed to another job if this is in the interest of her health or health of her child.
A pregnant of breastfeeding woman may be placed to a post in a different location only with her consent.

District of Brsko: During pregnancy or while breastfeeding, a woman must be transferred to another workplace if this is in the interest of her health as certified by an authorized qualified physician.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: If an employer is not able to secure assignment of the woman to another job, the woman shall be entitled to paid absence from work, in accordance with the collective agreement and rulebook.

Republic of Srpska: If the employer has no possibility of placing the woman to another job , the woman shall be entitled to leave of absence wtih a compensation in accordance with the collective agreement and rule book, but no less than the remuneration she would have received if she had worked on her post.

District of Brsko: If it is not feasible for the employer to transfer a woman, the woman shall have the right to paid leave of absence pursuant to a collective agreement or the book of rules.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: General provision covering all women: A woman may not be employed in underground work (in mines), unless the woman is employed in a position of management not requiring manual work or in health and welfare services or unless the woman must spend a period of training underground in a mine or must occasionally enter the underground part of a mine for the purpose of a non-manual occupation.

District of Brcko: No female shall be employed on underground work in any mine, with the exception of management positions which do not require manual work, employment in health and welfare services or for a period of training underground, or occasional work underground for the purpose of carrying out a non-manual occupation.

Republic of Srpska: A woman shall not b eassigned to work in underground parts of mines, except when working on a managerial position which does not require physical work, or in health or social service. Exampted are also women who temporarily work underground because of vocational trining or when a specific task needs to be carried not requiring physical work.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, full gender equality shall be guaranteed in all spheres of society, particularly in the fields of (inter alia): employment and labour, social and health care, irrespective of martial status and family status. Discrimination based on sex is prohibited. Any gender based discrimination in employment offers, public vacancy notices, job allocations, contracts and termination of contracts, shall be in violation of the Law on Gender Equality.
The employer shall undertake effective measures to prevent gender based discrimination at work or in contracts, and shall undertake no measures against an employee who complains against gender discrimination. A person seeking employment, as well as a person who becomes employed, shall not be discriminated against on the grounds of sex, birth or any other circumstance in respect of recruitment, training, promotion, terms and conditions of employment, cancellation of the contract of employment or other matters arising out of the employment relationship. This shall not preclude: (1) Good faith distinctions based on the inherent requirements of a particular job; (2) Good faith distinctions based on the incapacity of a person to perform the work that is required for the job or to undertake training sought, provided that the employer or person providing training has made reasonable efforts to adapt the job or the training to the situation of such person or to provide suitable alternative employment or training, where this is possible; (3) Any program, activity or provision that has as its object the improvement of the situation of persons who are economically, socially, educationally or physically disadvantaged.

Republic of Srpska: When exercising the rights deriving from employment or the right to employment, an employee as well as an individual seeking employment shall not be discriminated against on the basis of ... gender, ... physical condition or any othe rcharacteristics which are not directly related to the nature of employment.

District of Brsko: An employer may not refuse to employ a woman because she is pregnant.

Republic of Srpska: It is forbidden to request that women seeking employment or women already employed should be tested for pregnancy.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: An employer may not refuse to employ a women for her pregnancy, or cancel her employment contract because of her condition, or assign her to other jobs, except when a woman has been assigned to other jobs if in the interest of her health condition as established by the certified medical doctor.

Republic of Srpska: An employer shall not refuse to employ a woman because of her pregnancy or terminate her employment contract during her pregnancy or maternity leave.

District of Brsko: An employer may not refuse to employ a woman because she is pregnant nor shall he/she terminate her contract of employment because she is pregnant or on maternity leave.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina: The person whose rights are alleged to have been infringed (in regard of discrimination in employment) may bring a complaint of infringement to the courts. If the complainant makes a showing of obvious evidence of a discriminatory distinction the respondent shall have to prove that such distinction was not made on a discriminatory basis. If the court finds the complaint to be well-founded, it shall make such order as it deems necessary to ensure compliance with this article, including an order for employment, reinstatement, the provision or restoration of any right arising from the contract of employment.

Prohibited discrimination on the grounds of gender at work and in employment is defined inter alia as different treatment on the grounds of pregnancy, childbirth or exercising the right to maternity leave, including failure to enable an employee to return to the same job or another job of the same seniority with equal pay after the expiry of maternity leave.